Upside Down

Ever have your life turn completely upside down? I have a tendency to picture my future--I plan it all in very careful steps. I know, of course, that it may not happen that way. But I was not prepared for it to completely change like it has over the last few months. I had planned when school would be over, when each child would be born, when I would be able to quit and stay home. But...well, then this stuff happened:

1. I get pregnant. Yes, I allowed it to happen--I opened the door of possibility the TINIEST crack--and, being a Nielson girl, of course that was all it took.

2. Then I find out that not only am I pregnant, but I'm expecting twins. I can't even begin to describe how this has thrown my world--and my vision of my future--into a tailspin. Of COURSE I'm excited, but there are so many things to consider physically, financially, and emotionally with these little ones that I still haven't quite stopped spinning from the shock.

AND NOW....

3. The newest shock to my system: Trevor can't start nursing school until 2011. We thought he'd be starting this summer. He'll have all his prequisites finished after spring semester. But, apparently, that's not soon enough. We just  found out that in order to start this summer, he'd have to have all classes finished and posted by December. We are one semester off. If the stupid program started in the FALL instead of the SUMMER, like every other program known to man, we would have been fine. Instead, we are faced with the fact that we have to wait a WHOLE YEAR before he can even START his two-year nursing program. In other words, it will be THREE YEARS before we have any level of financial security.

This news made me totally cry. I have been so stressed, trying to figure out how we can afford these twins and manage for two whole years with all the extra expense and no additional income--and now it's going to be three years. One more baby than we planned, one more year than we planned--yes, my world is definately upside down.

I love my mom. When I called to tell her my devastating news, her response was instant: "What a blessing!" she chimed. HUH? But then she pointed out that now, the first year of our twins lives won't be so stressful if Trevor isn't in school. It gives us a year together with a little more time for our little ones. We might even be able to have Trevor home two days and save on daycare, or maybe he can work another job. Whatever we decide, it does, in some ways, take off some stress. On the other hand, it pretty much gaurantees that I will never, ever be a stay-at-home mom. By the time Trevor is done, the twins will be three. What's the point, then? They'll be ready for school so soon, and Afton will be in Kindergarten. Man, that sounds so far away.

Well, that's life I guess. You can't always plan everything. But man, if you'd told me this was where my life would be four months ago I would never have believed it.

Christmas 2010

I guess I might as well do my annual Christmas post. We had a great Christmas! As always, our Christmas is divided into three--we spend a few moments opening a few gifts at our house, then we go to my parents and open more, then we go to Trevor's parents and open TONS. That part takes about two hours! I really like this setup--though I'm sure as my kids get older it won't continue to work. Anyway, on Christmas Eve Trevor sent me upstairs to bed while he "got a few things ready" and it took him forever. I had no idea what he's up to, but when he came upstairs at last he said, "MUAHAHAHAH!!" So I knew he was up to something.

When I carried Afton down the next morning, Trevor was standing there with a camera, and this is what I saw:

Really? He got a digital TV? I was so excited! In hindsight, I'm pretty surprised I didn't see it coming. 

1. Trevor talked getting one non-stop and then suddenly seemed to "drop it." He never drops it. I should have known that meant he already bought one.
2. Usually we don't look at the credit card bill items until after Christmas so we are sure to surprise each other, but I noticed the bill was much higher than I expected and I thought there might be fraud on our account. But when I asked Trevor about it, he said, "Don't worry about it."
3. I did, after all, tell him that if he found one from under a certain price, to go ahead and get it. I just believed him when he said he didn't find one. Hmmm...

I think I am purposely obtuse when it comes to Christmas. I want to be surpised so bad I don't let myself think about anything!

I think that Christmas morning at our house was actually my favorite part of the day. Afton was so cute and so excited for each present. She "got it" when it came to unwrapping presents--this year, more excited about the gift than the box and paper! She wasn't yet overloaded by too my presents or distracted by the cat or her other toys. It was so fun.

We then headed to my Mom's, where we had, as usual, a quiet, humble, and practical Christmas. Trevor grew up in a home where there was more disposable income than mine. For his family, Christmas is about getting what you want. My mother is always practical--I totally get it from her. Although we still got things we wanted for Christmas, we also got what we needed. It was a very nice morning. Afton was so darn cute!

We had the traditional quiche that I make, and then we headed to Trevor's family by 11:00. This is a HUGE Christmas. Trevor's dad pretty much goes nuts over the holidays, and Trevor has inherited this. We had a nice big lunch, and then started on the gifts. Both Trevor's siblings are there with their kids, so there's a lot of us, and it takes a while to get through everything. But oh, it is so fun!

Afton immediately made a bee-line to her princess couch, and she and Madison sat on it a lot. It's pretty much her favorite gift. It's in front of the TV now, and she loves to pull it out like a bed and watch movies while she eats her "nacks." (fruit snacks)

Afton wasn't too happy about getting this family photo taken after all the presents are open!

I surprised Trevor, too. I got him the chainsaw he wanted really really bad. I totally splurged. Unfortunately, he totally splurged too. So we both broke our budget rules, had an awesome Christmas, and will now spend the next six months or so trying to get that damn credit card paid off before the twins get here!

It's strange to think about next year's Christmas. I will have THREE FREAKING KIDS! I just can't imagine that. The twins will be about 5-6 months old. So strange. I think next year we'll HAVE to stay in our budget rules no matter what!

Reality Begins...Tomorrow...

I'm sitting here on the eve of reality, and I'm not liking it one bit. When I think of everything I have to do tomorrow, and the day after that, and for the next few YEARS, I am so completely overwhelmed. On December 1st Trevor and I were due to fly to Las Vegas for a conference for my work. It made sense to schedule our first appointment with the doctor that day since we are both home. Oh how glad I am that Trevor was there with me at that appointment!

As you know, the doctor informed us that we are having twins.

And then we embarked on a four-day vacation in the most unrealistic of cities, Las Vegas. The last few days have been a whirl. We keep looking at eachother and mouthing, "twins!" because we can hardly believe it. In Vegas we told loads of people about our exciting news--complete strangers--because it never gets old. People are always so excited and delighted for you. We went out to eat, walked the strip, attended museums, and had a fabulous time. During the day I went to the conference, and in the evening Trevor and Adam, (the husband of another teacher who went with us, about the same age) hung out all day at the strip.

We knew, of course, that when we got home we'd have to face the reality of our situation. We'd have to sit down and hammer out the finances, and figure out exactly how screwed we are--and yes, we ARE screwed. There is no possible way we can afford these babies without help. Would I change it? Oh no. I'm absolutely ennamored of these babies already! But still, the practical side of me kept reminding me that coming home would be difficult. I'd come home to laundry, dishes, and ornery (but adorable) baby, three days of missing work and students to catch up, straightening out our finances after the trip, figuring out how to get a new key cut for my Toyota--which WILL NOT start with the key now (a fact we learned at the SLC airport. 20 minutes of trying before it finally turned. ) And of course, the reality that we REALLY ARE having twins. That Trevor is starting nursing school the same month they will be born, and will be working and going to school for two years. That our daycare is going to go from $260 a month to at least $600 (if we are lucky), and that there is no visible way of lowering our monthly expenses without taking out tons of student loans. I had planned, of course, on winning a million dollars at the slot machines, but about $10 later it hadn't happened so I gave up.

But that's tomorrow. Tonight is Sunday. I've got laundry in. The dishwasher is running. Trevor is playing with an obnoxious and demanding Afton downstairs. I don't want to think about the daunting task of paying for and taking care of three children under three. I want to pray that they will be both be born healthy and on time. I want to imagine holding their tiny little bodies against me and know that here is the rest of my family, in one neat little package. I want to hope that my body can handle this, that I can carry them to term and give birth as easily as possible. Is that too much to ask? Can't I just focus on the joy of being a twin mom, of knowing that the Lord has trusted me with these tiny little spirits? Can I let go and just let the Lord help me find a way to make it all possible? It seems completely impossible right now. I am trying very hard not to freak out completely. I had it all planned out--and this was not the plan at all. And now I have to rely completely on faith. And the charity of friends and neighbors and the United States Government. But despite the stress and the edge of hysteria, not to mention the double morning sickness, I am happy about it all. We'll find a way to make it work. They are coming--and we are going to be ready for them!

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words. (Or dollars)

A Thanksgiving Video

Thanksgiving this year was at my sister Aundi's house. As always when the Nielson family gets together, it was complete and utter CHOAS!! First we stopped at Trevor's parents, just to say high and give his parents a Thanksgiving gift. It was so quiet. So ordered. And they we get to Aundi's and it was a MADHOUSE. I actually really like this about both sides of our family--both atmospheres are great and have their advantages. Unfortunately, I didn't take many pictures. Grrr! Getting my family to sit still long enough to listen to anything is pretty much impossible. At Trevor's house, we were able to quickly gather round and present his parents with their copy of "I'm Grateful For..." A book I made from Afton to her Grandparents on Thanksgiving day. At Aundi's, we finally gave it to Mom during dessert. (Which, by the way, was FAB-U-LOUS. Cindy made these adorable mini desserts! SO GOOD! I love how she doesn't just make delicious and original desserts--they always LOOK to good!)

Anyway, we finally gave Mom her own copy of the book, and she began to read it aloud.  No one really listened except Dad and Jen and Rusty and Cindy--who was video taping the whole thing!

So, here is an exerpt of the video. If you want to see the book, click here!

Random Thoughts During Dancing with the Stars

I've been a little "slumpy" lately. Can't think of a darn thing to write on either of my blogs. I'm just blah. So I'm sitting here watching Dancing with the Stars, and a lot of thoughts are running madly through my head. Here they are. Enjoy.

1. Why is Christina Aguillera performing on this show? What does she have to do with anything? And why is her face plastic? Hmmm...I think I'll go post that thought on Facebook.
2. I am SO SURE that Jordan District won't cancel school tomorrow. That would be a COOL thing to do, and everyone knows we aren't the "cool" district. Canyons is. That's why they already have this week off. Granted, at the expense of their teachers, but I'm still jealous.
3. How on earth is Bristol Palin still in this competition? I've admired watching her grow in this competition, but if she wins, that just bites.
4. Is that Afton crying? Maybe if I ignore it it will go away....it went away...
5. I am so disappointed in this blizzard. I wanted it to be REALLY REALLY AWFUL! We didn't even have the lights go out. That sucks.
6. Why do people still  watch The Bachelor? (during a Bachelor commercial.)
7. What does "pickle me walnuts" mean, Len? (DWTS judge)
8. I love Harry Potter. I'm reading book 4. I want to read it instead of watching this endless finale. Seriously--this is the LONGEST finale. AND, I missed the first hour! What the!
9. That outfit that Lacey Schwimmer has on is the ugliest she's had all season. And that's saying something.
10. I really, really hate "The Situation." Seriously, I want to punch his big fat ugly pompous face. Like really bad. I hate him. I hate him SO DARN BAD.
11. Just give Jennifer Gray the trophy already. I'd rather be reading Harry Potter or playing the sims. Why am I watching this?
12. Open breaks? You are doing just boring old OPEN BREAKS? Come on, Lacey and Kyle, you can do better than that.

That is all.

Two Little Girls + Diaper Cream = TROUBLE.

I went to pick up my little girl today at Grandma Rees's, and found there was QUITE a story. An "incident" as Karen called it. Afton and her cousin Madison, 16 months her senior, apparently had a few unsupervised moments with a brand new tin of Penaten, a diaper cream that Karen uses.

The results, of course, were both disastrous and hilarious. My father-in-law got home just after it happened and, thankfully, managed to grab a camera between burst of laughter. Unfortunately, Afton's face had already been mostly wiped off, though Karen says it looked pretty much like Madison's. It was EVERWHERE. In her hair, her eyes, even her nostrils!

Karen was swabbing it out of her nose, her eyes, and it was all over! She gave them both baths and had to wash Afton's hair three times! And it's STILL a little greasy! Those little stinkers!

I think it's hilarous! And SO glad it didn't happen during MY watch!