Our 1st Thanksgiving...

...as a family of 4! :D Our holiday weekend has been pretty uneventful as we continue to more or less go about our typical routine. Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, Paul and I just hung out around the house taking care of Amelia and Penelope. It didn't really feel like a holiday and had the Macy's Day Parade not been on TV, Thanksgiving could have slipped by us mostly unnoticed. Next year should be a totally different story though, with our girls being much more active and possibly even walking! That should be a Thanksgiving to remember... Although when you think about it, this year is also a Thanksgiving unlike any we'll ever have again as we finally have what we've been dreaming about -2 beautiful and healthy baby girls. Now that is something to be truly thankful for! And when I think about what was happening with us one year ago, praying everyday to be blessed with a baby and struggling to understand why it wasn't happening as quickly as we wanted or thought it should... I had no patience for the unexplained and it was very difficult believing Paul when he would tell me that it would eventually happen for us and we'd have a baby sooner than we realized. What a difference 12 months can make - I never would have imagined we'd have 1, let alone 2, babies in that time. We've been doubly blessed! As I struggle with some of these early newborn days, I need to try to put it in perspective and remember all that we went through in the last year to have these babies. Of course, that is a little easier said than done, especially at 3am when both girls are taking turns fussing and crying and I've had an average of 4-5 hours of sleep every day for the past 3 weeks. :D

Yesterday, Friday, I started to get a little stir crazy and antsy with being cooped up in the house every day so Paul suggested I take the dog for a walk. In fact, he pretty much insisted I go outside for some fresh air so Barkley and I went for a short 20 minute walk. It was a little chilly but it felt great to be outside and it did help to clear my head and lift my spirits. Later in the day, the girls had their first major outing (other than to a doctor's appt) as we went to Grandma and Grandpa Clopton's house for their 1st Thanksgiving dinner. Again, it felt good to break up our usual routine (both physically and mentally) and even better, there were lots of extra hands around to hold and soothe the babies. Oh, and speaking of "soothing", we finally got to try putting both girls in the "sweetpeace newborn soothing center" and as of this morning, it works great with both of them! So great in fact, we are considering buying a 2nd one so they don't have to take turns in it. Thanks to Aunt Debbie, Melissa, Megan and Julie for the WONDERFUL shower gift!! The bouncy seats on the other hand have yet to work their magic. We'll keep trying though.....

We don't have much planned for the rest of the long weekend - just try to rest a little (me), do a little laundry (Paul), get a few groceries (me), maybe work on posting some of the latest pictures to Smug Mug (Paul).... The weather here in Columbus is beautiful today, sunny and not much wind so maybe I'll get to squeeze in another quick walk with Barkley (before the rain/snow mix hits tomorrow). I wish it was a little warmer so all 5 of us could venture out... We could all benefit from the sunshine and fresh air.

I hear someone starting to fuss and make a little noise (probably Amelia) so it must be getting close to lunch time which means I need to wrap this up. To all of our family and friends, Happy Thanksgiving!
Love,
April, Paul, Amelia and Penelope

P.S. Keep an eye on our Smug Mug site (or slide show here on the blog) as we definitely have some new pictures to share soon. Both girls certainly are changing and growing fast. Last night, they had big jumps in their weight - Amelia is up to 6#12oz and Penelope is up to 8#5oz. They both must have had a lot to eat at Thanksgiving dinner! :D