By the way...

Last Friday Debbie has a deep scan ultrasound to ensure that all was well with the twins.  This type of ultrasound is pretty common with twins and allows the medical staff to get a really good idea on the size and weight of the twins and how they are progressing with known standards.  This type of ultrasound also allows them to spot any issues that might be noticeable early in the pregnancy.

With all the extra "work" that is involved with having twins, we decided early on that we were going to find out the gender of the twins as soon as possible.  The deep scan ultrasound was the first opportunity that we were going to get a peek at what were going to be expecting.

Affectionately known as "Baby A" was up first and the technician seemed pretty confident in her analysis of the gender... GIRL!!!

On to "Baby B"...another GIRL!!!

In a matter of moments poor Grant and I were out numbered by the girls 2 to 1.  However, both Debbie and I are very excited with this news and now begin the name selection process.

Officially due in late September, but likely will deliver in early September, we have some work ahead of us to get things around the house ready for the arrival of the twins.

Exciting times ahead...stay tuned.

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San Francisco...

October 2011 will mark the 10th year I have been married to my best friend.  12-18 months ago I had thought of planning a big trip to someplace that neither of us had been to.  At first I was thinking big; Europe, Caribbean, Hawaii, Bora Bora, etc.., but as the time to really start planning came along, our thoughts on such a trip probably would not be possible.

After that realization took hold, we set out to plan 2-3 smaller trips to less exotic places, but destinations that we had not yet been to.  Late last fall we landed on San Francisco as one of those destinations.  We stayed 4 days and 3 nights in an awesome studio apt, which we found on airbnb.com.  The studio was very close to public transportation and had a great view of the city's skyline.

San Francisco is a very unique city, quite a contrast to our normal Midwest atmosphere.  Perhaps it was just California in general, but the both of us noticed the city's population was much more of a community centric area.  Public parks were packed with people from all walks of life, and a dog for every 3rd person.  All well behaved, I might add...

We put quite a few miles on our shoes during those 4 days, despite trying to use public transportation every place we went.  With a 4-month pregnant with twins wife in tow, I wasn't sure how much this would limit what we were able to do and see.  But she was a trooper and was always up for the next stop of the trip.

We tried not to plan things around a time schedule, since we didn't want to be stuck in a situation where we needed to be somewhere and were enjoying where we were.  So most of the time we just found the closest MUNI station and waited for our next ride, but we did have a couple of stops that were planned in advance with reservations.

As most people have noted who have visited SF, the food was great!  The Tartine Bakery's fresh sourdough was a favorite of mine. I think Debbie enjoyed the over-sized cinnamon rolls at a different bakery...and I'll admin they were damn tasty.

The notorious cable cars of SF were very interesting and quite possibly dangerous at times.  I decided to "hang" instead of sitting, which lends itself to wandering the numerous views that you encounter as you move along.  However, if you aren't paying attention, you could easily be sent flying by a passing cable car going the opposite direction...no leaning, I literally had no more than 8-12 inches of clearance when another cable car was zooming past.  Yikes!

The Golden Gate bridge is just amazing.  Everyone has seen pictures of this thing, but photos really doesn't do it justice until you have walked along side it to appreciate what a massive structure it is.  We thought about walking the entire length of the bridge, but instead settled to walk to the first main upright.

We brought back some great stories that we will both never forget from our short but enjoyable visit to San Francisco.

It was good to get home and see the kids, we got in late but had to briefly wake them to say hello.  They were excited to hear about how our trip went and enjoyed the little bits of chocolate from Ghirardelli's that we brought back for them.

A big thanks goes out to grandma who was generous enough to stay at our home and take care of the kiddos while we enjoyed our trip.

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