Maternity Pictures!

Remember that one time I had Kyra Cummings (@kc_photography_utah) take maternity pictures for me in February and she did absolutely perfect?! Also, remember how I (okay, really Kyra) got Chris to agree to be in these pictures with me?! I'm so happy with how they turned out and that I have something to remember the beauty and joy that has come with this pregnancy.

Our baby girl is scheduled to arrive on April 27th (4 days! HOW!?) and I think that whole "nesting" thing has kicked in... I was super productive today. And by productive I mean that I folded that  laundry pile that has been on our floor for 5 days + actually made dinner + packed my hospital bag. Okay, so maybe that burst of energy was really due to the fact that I got myself a dirty diet Dr. Pepper today, but we can still call it nesting, right?! Plus, don't you think posting my maternity pictures to this blog so I can cross it off my to-do list can be considered nesting? I think so! Even if you don't agree, I will say I'm right, since I'm almost 39 weeks pregnant. Ha. Poor Chris...he's heard that statement probably more times than necessary.

Anyway, I realize I have been the absolute worst at documenting this pregnancy. It's definitely not from lack of excitement for this girl to arrive... I just think this pregnancy has truly flown by and the time has snuck up on me and my true procrastinating self. And if we're being honest, I think half of me has been super nervous to document this pregnancy too much in fear of something bad happening, but I keep reminding myself that I just need to have faith that everything will work out how it's supposed to, and this little girl deserves to be celebrated no matter what! So, here we are!

As excited as I am to meet this girl, I am truly going to miss being pregnant. I have loved every minute of it and feel so grateful that I've made it this far and been able to experience what I have. This is also why I'm so grateful Kyra took these pictures for us... so I have something to look back on and remember this amazing time in my life that I never want to take for granted!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Our countdown for 2018 didn't end at midnight last night. . . 

We'll be counting down until May 2, 2018 - or until our baby GIRL decides to show up! 

...my heart still kind of sinks/somersaults every time I let someone else in on our secret, because I have so many mixed emotions with this pregnancy (obviously grateful is the biggest one!!!), but then I try to remind myself that my uterus doesn't know when I announce that I'm pregnant, so to stop worrying, you big weird! Plus, this little miracle deserves to be celebrated, too! Even if it scary for me and Chris.

We are so so SO grateful that everything has gone well so far during this pregnancy and pray that it can continue to for the next 17 weeks. The one true "resolution" I have for this year is to have this girl arrive here safely. Okay, and maybe not eat so many freaking carbohydrates + read "The Infinite Atonement" (thanks for the recommendation, Whit!), but that's it! I swear. 

Even though 2017 brought on the hardest trial I've ever gone through, it also brought me some of the happiest moments of my life - my time with Jett and Graham, drawing closer to my Savior, growing closer with my family, and of course, getting pregnant again with this baby girl. A good word to sum up 2017 would definitely be G R A T E F U L. 

Here's to the new year! + hoping I'm a better blogger in 2018 (ha!)

BUMP there it is!

The bump at 17 weeks, but I am 18 weeks today.

Are bumpdates even still a thing? (Let's be honest, is blogging even still a thing...?)

*crickets*

Anyway, cringing a little bit because I always told myself that when I got pregnant I would blog/post about more than just pregnancy, but here I am! Bump picture! (a super classy one too!) + Strategically placed hand over my ever growing love handles!

But in my defense, I just feel like I have a lot of FAQs regarding my pregnancy, and what better place to answer them all than in a blog post? . . .

*crickets*

Just indulge me! Okay?! Okay.

Were your twins spontaneous or were they fertility induced twins? I'm even a little confused on this myself now because I've had two specialists tell me I'm having twins because I was on Clomid, but then I had another specialist tell me that Clomid isn't responsible for identical twins, which is what I have. Hrmph.

Are they identical? How do you know? Fun fact about my twins: They are monochorionic/diamniotic twins, aka they share a placenta, but are in their own sacs. Because they're mono/di, they're considered identical twins. Another fun fact: Google complications with mono/di twins if you really want to stress about your twin pregnancy (don't). This is also the reason why I get to see a specialist every two weeks, to make sure the babies are growing at the same rate.

Have you been very sick? I would say no. For a good part of the first trimester I prayed that I would be sick, because I just wanted to be reassured I was still pregnant (I had like zero symptoms). I started getting nauseous around week 9 or 10 and ever since then my nausea has been on/off (even in this second trimester).

Any cravings? Not really and I'm pretty sure that's just because I was a fatty before getting pregnant. There was one day where I really wanted beef Rice-a-Roni, and so I ate the entire box... that was a great day.

Food aversions? The smell of meat makes me not love life ha and chewing minty gum makes me gag. Praise watermelon gum!

Feeling any movement yet? Nope. I've had things that felt like little tiny pops, but I am trying not to get my hopes up about them.

Have you been really emotional? I've been really emotional my whole life ha! (seriously ask anyone who knows me) If anything, I feel like I'm less emotional being pregnant now, but maybe you're better off asking Chris that question. Bless that man, bless him!

How are you sleeping? I sleep fine until I have to get up to pee every 3 hours. Isn't pregnancy so beautiful?

Do you have names picked out for your boys? Yes and no. I don't love discussing names with people that aren't family, just because I don't really care about their opinions. We'll see what they look like when they come out and if our names match up!


Annnnnd there you have it! Yay, pregnancy! Yay, Gourley twins!

Let's Hear It For The BOYS!

Two gender reveals, because we're THAT excited + have two huge families + we might as well get used to doing things twice... right!?

AHH, BOYS!

We are so, so happy + excited + nervous (duh).

Now that we know we're having boys, I can't help but think about all the hopes and dreams I have for them . . .

I hope they're best buds.
I hope they feel loved + valued individually, not just as twins.
I hope they wrestle with grandpa Sanderson.
I hope they go fishing with grandpa Gourley.
I hope they are gentlemen.
I hope they follow my fashion advice instead of their dad's.
I hope they kick their dad's butt in basketball on Sundays.
I hope they think my cooking is the best.
I hope they are smart... especially at math (dad will have to help them with that).
I hope they have best friend cousins.
I hope they come to know and love their Savior.
I hope they are optimistic like their dad.
I hope they play outside.
I hope they understand my humor.
I hope they get haircuts from grandma Gourley.
I hope they tell me when they have their first kiss... or at least let their dad tell me.
I hope they look forward to visiting grandma Sanderson on Sundays.
I hope they have a sprinkle of the same type of mischief their dad had growing up.
I hope they find their passion in life.
I hope they enjoy looking back deep into the archives of this blog.
I hope they know how happy they've already made me and their dad.

Annnnndd.... I hope they're okay being chauffeured around in a minivan, since that's more than likely in their near future.  

a tidbit of more love...

Yep, we're expecting TWINS!(!!!!!!!) We've never been so grateful + excited + scared + overwhelmed + every other kind of emotion there is to experience when finding out there are two humans growing inside your uterus! Obviously, this is one reason why I've been so absent from the blogging world, since every post in my draft box is like "HI! I'M GROWING TWO HUMANS!" But the other reason I've been a crappy blogger is because these babies took a lot of prayers + tears + time + fertility meds (that made me a semi-psycho B-word) to get here... which obviously is another post for another day. 

Even though it's still a little scary letting everyone in our secret, we can't help but feel so overwhelmed with the amount of love and support we've already received, we are SO blessed, and know these babies are already SO loved.

Here's to two more people I get to gush about on this little blog of mine...

September can't come soon enough.