I'm Okay with E. T.

For years, I would think about E.T. and want to cry. The particular scenes that were forever burned into my mind were Elliott's first encounter with the lost little alien (in a cornfield of all places) and then Drew Barrymore and E.T. screaming at each other.

The eyes widening. The neck moving up and down. And let's not forget E.T.'s terrifying scream. It was just too much for a little kid to take in. Even watching the first video (which, please notice, has not been altered by CGI unlike the second one) gave me a mild panic attack when I dared to watch it a few minutes ago.

 I remember my grandfather giving my sister and I matching E.T. dolls. The doll was supposed to be cute and cuddly. All I could think of was E.T. screaming. I conveniently left the doll at my grandparents' house. It's probably still there.

When we were at Universal Studios a couple of weeks ago, we saw the larger version of the stuff toy.

Because of my less than favorable memories associated with the film, I refused to watch the movie again for at least a decade. What could change? How would it benefit me? I somehow gathered my nerve (and strength) and watch the remastered CGI version. Somehow, E.T. was slightly cute because he was no longer real looking. The computer animation kind of ruined the authenticity of the film, but allowed me to feel like E.T. really wasn't an actual alien who would come into my house if I left Reese Piece's outside.

I watched and was moved to tears the second time--the "this-movie-is-so-moving-and-amazing" kind of tears. I loved it. Even so, I never expected to name a son Elliott.

When we found out I was pregnant a second time, I immediately knew the name of our future child. A daughter would be Hazel and a son would be Ezra.

But then there were two boys.

At first, I thought we would use our second boy name, Bennett. However, it just didn't feel right. I knew Baby A would be Ezra, but Baby B lacked a definitive name (Ezra would actually end up becoming Baby B after the boys did some acrobatics in utero). For weeks, we struggled with what to call him.

Sometime in July, I woke up with the name "Elliott" on my mind. I went through the list of Elliott's that I knew: T.S. Eliot, Elliott Smith, Elliott Stabler (Law and Order), and then there was El-li-ott from E.T.

That kind of ruined it. I worried about him being teased, but then decided it wouldn't really be an issue. Kids these days don't watch classic movies from the 80s, right? My close friends assured me that the name was wonderful and encouraged me to stick with my instincts. I finally felt peace about the decision (naming children is a huge deal) and decided I would celebrate the occasion by watching E.T. again sometime before the boys were born.

On November 27th, I went to bed with my usual aches and asked Nathan what Netflix movie we had sitting around; it was E.T. We watched the movie, cried together because it really is so good, and I fell asleep. I love that Elliott and Ezra were born less than 10 hours later.

Nearly every day, I find myself telling Nathan (or muttering it to myself): "I can't believe we have two babies, but I can't imagine only having one." I am so glad there was a second baby to name. I am so glad we have Ezra and Elliott.

As for this generation not making any "El-li-ott jokes", I think I underestimated the youth of America. When the babies were just a few days old, my in-laws went to visit my nieces and nephews in Portland. My father-in-law, Rex, told my nine-year-old nephew, Mason, that Ezra's nickname was "E-Z" because he was such an "easy" baby. Mason looked at Rex and said matter-of-factly, "Well, can Elliott be E-T then?"

So, without further ado, here is Elliott celebrating his name by wearing a red hoodie like his namesake (not really his namesake, but name-sharer, I should say).

No, this was not planned. I couldn't stop laughing when I noticed the similarities, though.

I must admit that it feels kind of wrong to devote a whole post to only one of the twins, but I think Ezra will understand. We love him (and his name) just as much as his brother.

Newsies

Christian Bale would be proud. Look at these hats!

I love having boys, and I love little boy clothing.

 When I first found out we were expecting twin boys, I was surprised by the number of people who said things like, "But dressing two girls would have been so much fun!" And while that may be true (to a certain extent), I have found happiness in robot clothing, dinosaurs galore, and now these little hats. 

On a side note, these pictures were taken (obviously) with the boys in their stroller. I am loving the Contours Tandem Stroller.  It is perfect for walks, and I like how Ezra and Elliott can face each other or both face us if we want.

 Family walks are the best.

(Sometimes) I Laugh at Technology

A year ago today, we were told I was growing one healthy baby.

We were even given a photo to prove it.

Call it mother's intuition or call it just lucky humor, but I vividly remember asking, "Are you sure it's just one?"

The doctor laughed and assured us that the picture was all the proof we needed to confirm the fact that there was only one baby inside of me.

Just two weeks later, though, Nathan and I were the ones laughing (hysterical, "I-can't-believe-this-is-happening-to-us-but-I-am-thrilled-out-my-mind kind of laughing) when the picture suddenly changed to show twins.

(And if we needed any more proof that ultrasounds aren't 100% accurate, I will just remind you that my sister had a boy and not a girl after five ultrasounds)

Home Again

It seems too good to be true.

As of Tuesday afternoon, we are HOME.

And after driving a staggering

 7, 424 miles, 

I make the solemn vow to never leave our little town ever again.  

(well, at least not for a few months)

I'm Not Ready For a Real Vacation Just Yet

While in South Carolina, Nathan and I decided we would escape to Orlando for a few days while we had access to excellent and willing babysitters (my mom and sister are the best). We discussed the details and invited my little brother, Hudson, and his girlfriend, Lindsey, to join in on the fun. Hudson and I have been obsessed with Harry Potter for the last 15 years, so I knew he would love to tag along to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Speaking of Hudson, he graduated from college this Saturday with a degree in engineering. He already has a job at a prestigious power plant and will be a nuclear engineer just like Homer Simpson. We're proud of out little smarty pants. 

My brother, sister, and dad.

Isn't my mom cute?

I love how happy Ezra looks.

We went to graduation and as soon as it was over, we packed our minivan and drove straight to Orlando. Nathan and I were excited to get away and bond with Hudson and Lindsey. But as soon as I shut the door after kissing the children goodbye, I felt a huge lump form in my throat.

How could I leave Ezra and Elliott so soon? Would there be enough stored milk to last the three days? Would they sleep okay without being able to nurse during the night? Would Eliza cry for us? Would my sister (who was alone with them for several hours) lose her mind with FIVE children under the age of 2? 

I was worried and feeling a ton of mixed emotions. The first night at the hotel, I cried myself to sleep while Nathan tried not to laugh. He was so relieved to be able to sleep longer than a three hour stretch that the thought of me missing the babies and having no sleep was laughable. He tried hard to be sympathetic, but his laughter actually cheered me up (rather than infuriating me). He was right. The children would be fine without me. I would be fine without them, too.

The next two days were AMAZING. We went to Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios, which meant our days were extremely busy.

It's not surprise that my favorite places were the Jurassic Park rides and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

We were able to try Butterbeer, which was absolutely delicious. In case you were wondering, it taste fairly similar to a Vanilla Bean Frappucino from Starbucks.

The rides were fantastic and the shops were just like I imagined. From the sorting hat and Gryffindor flags to chocolate frogs and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean in the Honey Dukes Candy shop, everything was there!

My brother was the most excited about the wand experience. He had to have a wand and thought long and hard before deciding on Voldemort's prized possession.

Nathan felt "evil" just touching it, but Hudson thought it was too cool to pass up.

Of course, we couldn't leave Ollivander's wand shop without having a duel.

I really wanted Fred and George's matching wands for Elliott and Ezra (they need them, right!?), but we decided 80 dollars was a little much to spend on 5 month olds.

 I also loved the Time-Turner necklace, but it was a little pricey. My brother and Lindsey surprised me with a Time-Turner keychain, which I loved! It was the perfect gift.

We rode rollercoasters, watched 3D shows, and enjoyed the sights. Unfortunately, Nathan was unaware that he actually doesn't like rollercoasters. He had only been on a couple of rollercoasters before going to Orlando and none of them had 3D effects or did crazy spins. I felt so bad that he didn't go on most of the rides, but he assured me he went for "the experience." (Hudson and I both agreed that whether or not you like amusement parks and rollercoasters should be on a pre-wedding uestionaire.)

Another highlight of the trip was seeing the movie "The Avengers." We loved it, and it was especially entertaining after wandering throughout the land of Superheroes for a day.

The only downside to the trip was worrying about the kids and how my sister and my mom were doing in addition to constantly pumping. I continued to pump every three hours (yes, I brought my pump to the amusement parks) and keeping the milk frozen was an adventure on its own. I refused to let it go to waste, though!

 Oddly enough, I pumped nearly 40 ounces more a day. That's over a gallon of milk a day. As soon as we returned to South Carolina, my supply was back down. I think this goes to prove that everyone could use a little vacation. Stress really does affect you!

After two and a half days of partying without children, I was grateful to be back home and holding my little ones.

A Quick Warning to Eliza's Future Spouse

Apparently, Eliza is an aggressive driver. And a tad bit vindictive.

Her cousin, Robert, has an awesome Power Wheels truck. It has everything from padded seats and shiny rims to a functional FM radio. Eliza was fascinated by the toy car and watched jealously as her cousin expertly drove it around the backyard.

Soon, it was Eliza's turn to drive the truck. She was a natural and learned quickly how to apply the gas, back the car up, and steer. Robert was happy to be the passenger for a little while, but soon grew disinterested in merely riding around and got out of the vehicle.

Eliza then went joy riding on her own, and I could see her happily smiling as she drove around in circles. I went to feed the babies and suddenly heard my sister yelling and saw her running towards the Power Wheels truck.

Eliza had backed over Robert. He was completely underneath the miniature car. He wasn't hurt at all, but he was definitely shaken up from the ordeal. Apparently, Robert had approached the car, telling Eliza it was his turn. I don't think she intentionally put the car into reverse and wheeled him over, but she was certainly trying to get away from him and keep the car to herself!

Needless to say, Eliza's driving privileges were temporarily revoked.

At least I have another 14 years before I have to deal with her actually driving a real car.

Surprise!

Due to all of our traveling the past month, I have been pretty bad about blogging. I realize I failed to mention the arrival of my sister's baby earlier this month.

A big reason we decided to come to South Carolina in April was that I wanted to be there for the delivery of my niece, Aubrey Joyce. She was due on April 17th, and we planned on being here around April 10th or so. I thought we would make it in time for the big day.

Silly me. I should have known one can never plan on when a baby will come. On April 7th, I was texting Marian like any normal day. She was running some errands, and I was telling her about our minivan search. We were talking about how awkward it is to nurse in a McDonald's PlayPlace when she suddenly texted, "My water just broke in Walmart."

I was a bit disappointed that I was not going to be there, but I was excited for Marian. I texted my mom and my sister (whose niece had taken over her phone to send us updates) throughout the afternoon and night.

Several hours later, I got THE text message from my mom, announcing the arrival of the baby. I read the text, and then read it again. And again.

All I could say (and text) was, "WHAT?!

I then had to text Marian for confirmation. Surely, my mother was mistaken.

That's right. Marian had a boy. After months of being told she was going to have a girl, a perfect little boy arrived. The reason why this was really shocking was that Marian had received at least 5 or 6 ultrasounds (including a 3D ultrasound) due to some complications. Each ultrasound confirmed the "fact" that my sister was carrying a girl.

Well, apparently ultrasounds fail--just like when an ultrasound told Nathan and me that we were expecting one (not two) babies. 

Marian was surprised, of course, but overjoyed to have another healthy son. However, she was definitely unprepared for a little boy. She had given away all of her boy clothes and had received tons of pink presents for the (now) nonexistent Aubrey. Her biggest challenge, though, was picking out a name.

It took her four long days to decide on a name: Jacob Brennan.

He sure is cute. And we're glad HE is here.