and the verdict is...

IDENTICAL!

Okay, so everybody besides us already new it, but now it is official. We had the girls genetically tested and they are most definitely identical. We think it is so fun. They each have a little certificate for their scrapbooks now saying that "The twins are concordant for fifteen out of fifteen STR DNA markers. The twins are monozygotic (i.e. identical twins) with a greater than 99% probability."

We had to swab the inside of their cheeks with a cotton swab type of thing and mail the sample into the University of Utah, and we just got the results back in the mail. It is exciting to finally say for sure that they are identical when every stranger stops to ask. When the girls were first born (picture below) our doctor said he thought they were fraternal, so we just basically believed that and didn't bother to have them tested. As they've gotten bigger and look so much alike we realized that it was more likely they were identical.

So that means that one egg was fertilized and then it split, which also means that it isn't genetics. Fraternal twins run through family lines because the woman has two eggs, but identical twins are just "random." That makes sense because there are no twins in my family. That means all my sisters are likely off the hook. In one sense I'm a little bit sad because our chances of having twins again aren't so likely. People may think I'm crazy to say that but I actually would love to have twins again! I think I can say that even more now that the first six months are a blur!

Anyway, just thought we'd share our fun news. We think we have the cutest girls in the world.

Rain

Here are the girls enjoying a missouri rainstorm.

Yay Bella!

Bella is walking! She started last week and it is so cute. She's got the drunken sailor walk going and I love it. She is so proud of herself. She falls down all the time but it is great because she just hops right back up and keeps going. She is going to give Maddie a taste of her own medicine now that she'll be able to steal toys and run away with them like Maddie does. Bella is such a sweet girl. She has an adventureous little spirit. She is always climbing on everything and getting into everything she sees (like the pan cupboard). She is really observant and loves to take things out and then put them back in all day. We love her!



The girls spend most of their playtime in this little house. They have fun in it all day. Bella carries her bear around everywhere and Maddie is really into spoons lately, so this picture captures them perfectly. My other favorite thing is to tell them to "give your sister kisses." They think it is so funny and they'll do it all the time. I love it! Here is Maddie trying to give Bella kisses.

more wedding pics

Here are pictures from Michelle's wedding (thanks to Abby's blog) for everyone who wanted to see them...

Wedding Weekend

I had the best weekend in California for my dear friend Michelle Rowan's wedding! She was married to Scott Sorensen in the Oakland Temple on Saturday and then had a beautiful reception at her backyard in Merced that night. I was so so happy that I was able to go. Scott and the girls had a daddy daughter weekend! I left friday afternoon for the 3 hour drive to St. Louis. Then I flew to Oakland with a layover in Dallas, so by the time I got there it was 11:30 pm. I was meeting Abby & Hillary there, but they had gone to the wedding dinner and Bachelorette party, and poor Alex was still driving in the car, so I had to take the bart to where we stayed in Walnut Creek. It was quite the journey and I was a little nervous about riding the bart alone so late at night, but it was a weekend so it was plenty crowded. I finally made it to the hotel at 1:00 am. We woke up early and went to the wedding at the temple. Michelle's grandpa sealed them, and it was such a great ceremony. We took pictures at the temple and it was the perfect day. Michelle's dress was the most beautiful thing ever! I can't believe I don't even have a picture with her. I didn't have my camera, and then the battery died later, so this is the only picture I have. Abbs, I need copies of yours!

Michelle's husband, Scott, had a huge group of friends there with their wives. He went to Highland, and a few of them married girls I went to high school with, so it was a small world to see them all there. Scott is also great friends with Mike Wheatley (the husband of my great friend and former roomie, Taryn, who unfortunately couldn't come) but Mike was there. Leash- Your cousin Dave Todd was there, of course. Scott Sorensen also knows V-Dawg (my brother Mike) from High school (lets be honest... who doesn't know him?) so that was another fun connection.

After the temple MAHAK went and had lunch (minus Michelle obviously). We also went with Michelle's cute friend Kylie. It was so great to catch up and be with the girls. MAHAK goes back to BYU folk dance where we all were roomates during SPAC. We have been best friends ever since! It is a totally cheesy Jr. High thing to do to have a name like MAHAK (Michelle, Abby, Hillary, Alex, Katie) but somehow it stuck, and that is what we've been. Then we all started getting married and it has undergone many revisions... the latest being PHABSMAKS... I guess we'll just add another S for the second Scott now!) So silly, but fun! Anyway, these girls are like sisters to me. We are the kind of friends that can get together after months of not seeing each other, and have it be completely normal. I know we'll always stay close, and I'm so grateful for that. It was wonderful to have some girl time (including little Miles and Austin, of course). We are all spread out in Missouri, Texas, Utah, Santa Barbara, and San Francisco. Since 2003, when Scott and I got married, one of MAHAK has gotten married every summer since. Abby & Peter in 2004, Hillary & Spencer in 2005, Alex & Ben in 2006, and Michelle & Scott in 2007. Now we'll have to find another excuse to get together every year.

The reception that night was amazing. Truly one of the most perfect/classy/gorgeous weddings I've ever seen. Very magazine worthy! Michelle and her mom did such a great job. The night was filled with pictures, a buffet, and dancing. Everything went great. I will post more pictues from Abby... hopefully one with the bride in it!

I left sunday morning and it took all day to get home after some flight delays etc., but I made it! It was wonderful. I missed my hubby and my girls like crazy. I'd never even been apart from the girls for more than a few hours. They did great with Dad though. He is a champ. I don't know how many guys would let their wives leave them with their babies during school. I came home to everything in perfect condition... :) My husband is a saint. It was so liberating and rejuvenating to have some time "off" for even a couple of days. I highly recommend it, and am grateful it worked out. Thanks to my hubby Scott for being so incredible and to Michelle for letting me be part of everything!

Meet me in St.Louis... um no thanks.

I have to post about our adventures in St. Louis last week. Scott went with a few friends on a 3 day road trip to see some of the rotation sights in Michigan and Ohio. They were getting back to St. Louis on tuesday night, so Tobey and I went wednesday morning to meet Jason and Scott. We were going to stay for a couple of days and see all the museums and stuff there. About half way to St. Louis I was thinking how lucky I was that the girls had slept the whole time so far. Then I turned around in time to see Bella throwing up all over herself. You've all been in a car with the throw up smell... it is BAD! So, we pulled over, and I tried to clean up the brand new car seat, and put the smelly clothes in the trunk. Then we were on our way. About an hour later and I turned around to see Maddie throwing up all over herself and her brand new car seat. By this point the smell was horrible. The first thing we did in St. Louis was to find a grocery store to buy some Febreeze!
Anyway, we finally made it and got to go see the temple and the zoo, so that was fun. After the zoo we were driving around to find a gas station to get a drink. We saw a bowling alley and decided it might be fun to bowl, so we were going to go check it out. We pulled in the parking lot and turned off the car. Jason ran in to see if the bowling alley was too smokey, and when we decided it was and went to leave, our car wouldn't start.
We tried everything we could think of, but nothing worked. We borrowed jumper cables from a couple different people who all told us that we really should get our car out of this area, because it wasn't safe. They kept saying if we left our car there, it wouldn't be there in the morning! That made us feel much better. All the kids were tired and hungry and hot, and we didn't know what to do. It was too late in the day for car places to be open, so we were getting a bit frustrated. Finally Scott found a tow cable in our trunk, and we hooked it up to the Roos' car and they towed us a few miles until we found a Wal mart. The unfortunate part is that they couldn't find the spot to hook the tow cable on, so they kept hooking it to places that would come off in the middle of the road. We had to keep stopping and directing traffic while we tried to get going again. The kids were all screaming in the sweltering car with no AC so it felt like a long few miles. We made it to Walmart, and although the car area was closed, some nice workers were still there and they took pity on us and helped us get in a new battery. By this point it was like 9:00 and we were all exhausted but grateful that the car was running again. Thank goodnes for the Roos'! You saved our lives!
So we started driving out to our hotel that we had booked on priceline (for only $25 a night) but we couldn't seem to find it. We finally did, and the reason we had a hard time was because all the power was out. A storm had come through and they weren't letting anyone stay. We couldn't believe our luck. We ended up going down the road and having to pay $100 at the nearest hotel. The next morning the girls were still sick and the Roos' daughter, Addie was sick too, so we just decided to go home. So unfortunately our trip to St. Louis was cut short, and left us with a sour taste for that city... maybe we'll give it a try again in a few months. As for now, we are glad to be back home with the car working and the girls healthy again.

24

My birthday this year ended up being during Scott's finals week, but thanks to my wonderful friends here in Kirksville, I had a great day. I went to lunch with a group of friends at Ruby Tuesdays and it was fun to just get together. Maddie and Bella were tired and a little naughty, and sort of hard to handle. They just kept wanting to climb on the tables and wouldn't sit in their chairs, so Scott came and picked them up so I could enjoy lunch a little more! That is why they aren't in the picture. Thanks, Saysh for organizing, and for all you girls for coming.

That night was our girl's night at Tana's so I got to celebrate again. Tobey brought all sorts of decorations and Kasey made a delicious cake! I love just getting together and chatting with the girls! I was so grateful for good friends who made the day great.

Scott and I got to celebrate the next day because his finals were over! We went to Columbia and ate at the Olive Garden and did some shopping. My sweet husband spoiled me as always. We had such a fun time and there is nothing I love more than spending time with Scott.

Thank you everyone for the phone calls, cards, emails etc. What a great birthday!