The Twin Story!

On the left is my great uncle Doug and on the right is my Grandpa Don. They are twins that came at the tail end of twelve children. My Grandpa always took great pride in being his brothers keeper and loves being a twin. My Grandma Sonntag also has a twin brother and sister (sorry no pics).

These are my Grandpa Taylor's twin sisters Marilyn and Carolyn, looks like it was Halloween.

These are my twin sisters Shalie (the burnette) and Karlie (the blonde). They are 17 years old, both about 6 “1” and just got their braces off. Woo Hoo! Growing up nobody would beleive us when we told them they were twins, other than their similarity in height they don’t really look alike.

Karlie and Shalie do pretty much everything together. I tease them that they are going to end up living next door to eachother married to brothers.

One time the family was sitting at the dinner table- The conversation evolved into a friendly argument about which sibling had it the worst. Shalie turned to our brother Nathan and said "I had 4 years of bliss before you were born." Karlie turned to Shalie, "I only had 13 minutes!"

At one of my showers I repeated some wisdom that my mother had recently bestowed upon me, "Put the uglier twin in the cuter outfit." (great advice for any mother really)

Without missing a beat Karlie said, "So that's why Shalie always gets the cuter clothes!" Ha Ha

Even though I never in a million years thought I would have twins, I guess they run in the family!

Here are some pictures from a little prego-photo shoot we did in my Grandmas back yard. I've had a lot of people tell me that they wish they had taken more pictures while they were pregnant and so far pretty much all of mine have been with my computer camera,so here are a couple for posterities sake.

32 weeks! The light is gleeming off my belly.

This is my most recent pic (35 weeks 4 days). On average twins come at about 36 weeks, and I'm officially 36 weeks now! We are playing the waiting game, everyone is pretty antsy for them to come. But I can guarantee there is no one more antsy than me!

People have stopped telling me that I look tiny. Now when I go out they totally stare at my belly. Isn't this is Utah for crying out loud? You can't throw a rock without hitting a pregnant woman! I feel like I'm back in China!

People (mostly women) talk to me like I'm about ready to pop. They ask me how far along I am and when I tell them that I'm due any day they get this satisfied look on their faces like "yeah, I thought so." Then I say, "I'm having twins." It's still fun to see peoples eyes bug out when I tell them.

The other day in the grocery store a cute older lady stopped me and started asking me a bunch of questions, when I told her I was having twin girls she got all excited and said that it was her life long dream to have twin girls. I was like whoa, I'm living out someones life long dream? She continued to tell me that she was so glad she talked to me because it just made her day! She was a complete stranger and was as excited as anyone abut the news--so cute!

Are you a super star?

Every time I look out at the gorgeous mountains that surround my parent’s home I get an overwhelming urge to go mountain biking. But alas, mountain biking is something that women 32 weeks pregnant are discouraged from doing, a long with downhill skiing, skydiving, jumping on the trampoline, and eating sushi.

My life has become pretty tame- I confess I am totally content to sit around, the less I move the less ache. My body reminds me constantly that I am pregnant with twins. (Fingers crossed) These babies should be here by about week 36. That's only four weeks away!----------------------I just passed out. ( ;

My life may be a bit boring but Ezra's daily life definitely keeps up with all the Crasiness China has to offer. This is a picture of Ezra with the translators/ accountants that work for Ag-Feed. From left to right we have: Cat, Ezra’s most trusty translator who I taught to tell Ezra to “settle down” and “be patient”--lol, Apple, who is due to have her first baby any day now!, Ezra, my bodacious husband, Audrey, who speaks super fast and squeaky, she is almost constantly smiling and excited, and last but not least a cute gal that doesn't speak English whose name I cannot remember----uh-she's new.

I love these girls, there were a few times when Ezra was traveling and I had spent all morning throwing up and could hardly move and these girls brought me lunch and took care of me.

Anyway they decided to let Ezra come along with them to visit the lotus flower gardens at Gaungxi University. After they took this picture other garden visitors started lining up to take pictures with Ezra. He says he was there for a bout a half hour taking pictures with different groups of strangers. They would even get angry and yell at each other if people not in their group tried to sneak in the picture.

Finally a young girl walked over to Ezra and said,

“Excuse me, I’ve never seen you before, are you a super star?”

Ezra just laughed. I think he should have just told her that he is quite famous in the United States and act all offended that she didn't recognize him. He is obviously loosing his entrepreneur mind set- He totally should have started charging money for each photo. He could have hade a killing.

Nobody knows who the kid is.

The gardens were really awesome, the flowers are huge, like the size of your head, and apparently they only bloom once a year. Ezra really enjoyed touring the gardens. I have to admit I’m pretty proud of his photography skills.

As they all left the gardens Ezra bet them lunch that none of them could make it up a big stair in one step. To his surprise Cat took a flying leap and Ezra ended up taking them all to joint they picked across the street. Ezra was a little skeptical about the food so he only ordered a coke. As they sat waiting for their food, Out of nowhere, Ezra sees a flash of black and hears a big thud on the chair next to him.

Confused, he looks around and all of the sudden a table of ladies behind him start screaming bloody murder. A huge rat was climbing up a ladies leg. They screamed for the waitress and she came and scooped up the rat in her dust pan, instead of rushing out the door she headed back into the kitchen! After the rat was out of sight everyone settled down and went back to their meals including the rat-leg lady. If some one had been in the chair next to Ezra, that thing would have fallen right in their lap! No big deal right? It's just a rat!

I can’t say I was disappointed to miss that one.

Gettin There!

Here is my most recent belly pic- I'm stickin out there!30 Weeks!

This is a pic from my Idaho Shower, My nephew Landen is having a moment. He's gets mad because we keep telling him about these fun new cousins and he never ever gets to see them. He has told me on more than one occasion to "Open it!" He then he proceeds to try and lift up my shirt. So funny!

These are pictures from a little birthday party my cousin Jan and I had at my grandmas house. I'm 24 now- whoa!

I feel like I’m growing exponentially at this point. I washed one of my recently purchased prego shirts and when I tried to put it on it was way too small. I complained to my Mom that I hadn’t even dried it and it had still shrunk. She tactfully explained to me that it was not the shirt that shrunk but me that grew. Ha---I was just so sure it had to be the shirts fault.

Sometimes I think these baby girls are making themselves a little bit too at home, they have decide to nuzzle up into my ribs- they especially like to do it when I’m sleeping so I wake up in the night feeling like I can’t move. The sensation of having two babies in my belly has become quite the experience. They are getting so much bigger and I definitely feel the results of the lack of space- they probably do to, poor things.

I had a lovely baby Shower up in Idaho this past weekend. It was so fun to see everyone, friends and family were all so generous. We got some really great gifts. Ezra and I feel so spoiled. A big thanks to every one that came, especially Shanna and Larae who put the whole thing together.

These little girlies are going to be here before too long, I just can’t believe it. The shock of finding out that we are having twins has definitely not worn off, I wonder if it ever really will. As my due date draws nearer I have become an overwhelmed mix of nervous and excited.

I was talking to my Dad, I told him that I wasn’t so sure about this whole twin thing because I feel like I’m in over my head. His reassuring response was “you are.”

-------What I was looking for was some thing like “it’s going to be so great, or don’t worry you’ll be fine, or it’s going to be so fun.”

Thanks for the pep talk Dad ( :

Along with all the worry of a first time Mom I feel doubl-ey blessed. I know that these babies are such exceptional little humans. I have felt that over and over during this pregnancy. I want more than anything to be the kind of Mom that teaches her children how truly special they are and help them realize all the wonderful gifts and blessings they have been given.

Ezra and I are so excited to meet our little ones (and they are going to be little---- we’ll be lucky if they’re five pounders). I CANNOT wait to have my husband back with me. I really don’t know what I would do with out skype right now. Over the past months I have gained a greater compassion for those, who for whatever reason, live without their spouse. I have also become increasingly grateful for a spouse that has an amazing ability to love life and be continually optimistic no matter what circumstances he finds himself in. He is my hero.

Although life has become a tad bit crazier than I ever imagined it could be. I know that our little family is already so incredibly blessed.

Goodness girl, you huge!

It's funny how a conversation between 2 hippos (Madagascar 2) seems to fit the stage of life I am at right now!

"I like em big,I like em chunky, I like em big, I like em plumpy, I like em round with somethin somethin"

Theres definitly "somethin, somethin" goin on in my belly. With one baby head up and one head down I'm getting kicked and poked in just about every direction! It's crazy how strong such little creatures can be- I've gotten a few kicks that make me wonder if I've got a couple of future soccer players in there.

I looked up an illustration of what twins look like in the womb- the poor things are so squished- I hope they're not accidently kicking each other.

These are some pics from the last few weeks.

"I'll see you round girl, It wont be hard, cuz you're so plumpin"

With each of these baby girls bound to gain at least 4 more pounds a piece- Plumpin is exactly what I'll be. Even though I'm plenty achy I love having a baby belly! I'm even getting used to people patting it like an obiedient dog.
Go'in on 28 weeks!

Mexico

It’s been a while- we’ve been pretty busy. Here’s the long and short of it. Ezra and I somehow survived the flight from Shang Hai to San Francisco. I’m learning that

Plane
+
14 hours
+
economy class
+
pregnant

= TORTURE.

The little Chinese lady in the isle seat probably hated my guts for the number of times I got up. I don’t know if it was the elevation or the fact that we were flying at 400 miles through the air, but I was having the worst cramps, I had an achy tailbone and could not get comfortable for the life of me.

I think it was about half way through the flight that I decided that I could stand it no longer. This is when the pep talks from Ezra came in handy and somehow I survived the next 7 hours. But by the time we reached Salt Lake City (after 3 different plane rides) I was on the verge of a serious breakdown. I couldn’t keep the tears from my eyes. I think there was a little drop of just about every emotion in those tears.

My Dad picked us up from the airport and waiting at my parent’s house was the best dinner ever! The next morning we headed up to Idaho and had wonderful time. I think I got the best welcome of my life from our little nephew Landen. It was so fun to see everyone. We made sure we brought back some chicken feet for everyone to try. ( ;

Then it was back to Utah. All my siblings were on Spring break and the family was planning on heading down to Tijuana Mexico for a service trip with a few other families from the area. Ezra and I decided to join them. We just can’t seem to get enough international travel.

The 14-hour drive seemed like a walk in the park compared to the plane ride. A little bit of “squirm” room can make a HUGE difference.

The whole service group was to stay in a hospital/clinic, anyone who’s been to Tijuana can image what this “hospital” was like. Crazy! We were supposed to sleep on the floor on sleeping pads but ended up on hospital beds instead. It was pretty sweet!

The first day we were able to attend church. Our service group sang a musical number in Sacrament meeting (in Spanish) and it was a lovely Sunday. Ezra was the only Spanish speaker in our group and he was having a great time talking to all the ward members. He was loving all the mission memories it was bringing back.

The next day we were to start work at two separate orphanages, one for the older kids and one for the youngins. Ezra found out that he was related to one of the families on the trip—the Ropers. My Dad, Adam, Ezra and the Roper boys made up the roofing team. They were to build a roof for the shop where the older orphan boys could learn useful skills such as welding and carpentry.

The little guy in the red decided he would spray paint his face- we called him the hulk.

The rest of us went to the orphanage with the younger kids and started on a series of projects building shelves, remodeling, and painting. We spent the first day busy as can be with little orphan children running around everywhere.

At the end of the day we decided to have dinner at a local taco stand. We parked all 7 of our group’s vehicles next to the stand and had an authentic Mexican meal- it was actually pretty good.

We were finishing up dinner when a family from our group went to their car and found that all their belongings had been stolen including the radios we had been using to stay together as a group. Everyone went to check their cars.

When I found my purse was gone a long with Ezra’s camera, I was instantly worried- not about my lost camera and wallet, but about my passport. I thought, “I just got back from China, I really don’t want to be stuck in Mexico!” My only relief was that another family had also lost their passports and at least they would be stuck with me. We were stunned, our cars were parked right next to us. The first car wasn’t 5 feet away!

The thieves were nowhere to be seen and they had hardly left a mark on any of the cars. They had disabled the alarm systems and used slim jims to unlock the doors. Not your amateur criminals.

On our way back to the hospital we had a long conversation about the punishment we would have inflicted if we had caught them in the act.

Before we went to bed Ezra checked his jacket pocket for his own passport and to our surprise mine was in there too. I was thrilled- I was not going to be stranded! I couldn’t remember ever giving my passport to him. Tender Mercy!

Many members of the group were pretty bummed and angry about the stolen goods. Including me. The next morning we had a devotional and the scriptures we happened to read were all about loving your enemies. We just had to laugh.

After breakfast we loaded into the cars and started on our caravan to the orphanages. We weren’t far from the hospital when we passed a store where they were selling shelves. As we were waiting for a few men to buy and load the shelves Ezra heard (Spanish) voices on our radio.

This was their conversation:
“Those Gringos were so easy to rob last night, we’re going to get them again this afternoon, they’re out in front of the store right now.”

The thieves that had stolen our things were following us! They knew exactly where we were. We got out of the cars and spread the word to the group. We all decided to go back to the hospital where we could talk about what we were going to do.

All the kids were sent into the safety of the hospital as the adults tried to come up with a course of action. No one wanted to leave all our projects undone, so we decided to go back to the orphanages and hurry and get all our projects done so we could cross the border back into California that night.

The group loaded into the cars and headed off once again. Ezra was given charge of the radio so he could translate if our thieves decided to do any more talking.

We were about half way to the orphanage when Ezra heard the voices again.

They said:
“Their all headed to the big ranch, we’re gonna dance at the big ranch, we’ll have so much money to buy beer”

Once again they knew exactly where we were going and they we’re planning on robbing us.

Things were getting a little bit too personal. We decided not to go to the orphanage and met at a gas station where we called the police. It wasn’t long till a bunch Mexican police officers were showing up with M-16s. It was nuts- it felt like we were in some kind of movie.

We told the police about our predicament and they agreed to be our personal guards the rest of the day. With police escorts we felt much safer, they guarded our cars and the entrances to the orphanages while we worked like mad men to finish all our projects.

It was so fun to get to know these special little orphans. Between the working and the projects we were able to get to know their cute little personalities. I made friends with a cutie named Brian he would walk around asking for me, “Jes—ee—ka, Jes-ee—ka. With my limited Spanish vocabulary I told him that I was pregnant:
“dos bebes….ninas”
His eyes went big, “dos?”
“Si, Dos ninas”
A mischievous smile spreads across his face, “no, ninos”
After that our conversation went something like this
“no, ninas”
“ninos”
“ninas”
“ninos”
“ninas”
I finally gave up. But the rest of the day Brian would come over and hug my belly. So cute! If I could have I would have taken him home with me.

Brian with one of the younger kids

Their living circumstances were so bad, so many kids and so few people to take care of them. It was wonderful feeling to know that we helped in some small way. Luckily we were able to finish our projects and even had some time left over to play with the kids.

As we parted we sang a hymn, it was such a special experience. It was so hard to leave the kids but we were all grateful for the experience despite everything that happened.

That night an undercover police escort got us to the border. Back to the good ol U S of A. I don’t know why but every time I’ve ever crossed the border whether to Canada or Mexico r it’s been a comical experience. Maybe it’s because of all the waiting you have to do you just get bored. This time Ezra made up a hilarious little monologue about metaphors and Mexicans.

Thanks to the generosity of some family friends we were able to stay at a beautiful beach house. And thanks to a different family friend we were able to get free park hopper passes to California Adventure and Disneyland. I thought it was going to be a bummer for me because I can’t go on very many rides, but it ended up being really fun. The next day we spent Ezra’s 28th birthday playing at the beach!

So what are we up to now? Because my pregnancy is considered high risk and we have limited medical services in Nanning, I have to stay in the states until the babies are born. Ezra has gone back to work in China but is planning on coming back sometime before these two little fur balls are born sometime in July. Until then we are on skype 3 or 4 times a day and trying to keep busy so we don’t miss each other too much. It’s pretty crazy but we’re doing our best to make it work. Time has really been flying by, only 9-10 more weeks until these babies arrive!

Baby........?

We are thrilled! Baby Girls! It's so good to be in the United States and finally get a real check up, both babies are doing great! One measures at 20 weeks 5 days and the other 20 weeks 1 day. I've been pretty nervous for this appointment and I can't express how happy I am that the babies are doing so well! It's definitely an answer to our prays! We are so Excited! We got to see their little faces and hands and feet-I'm in love!

My grandpa Sonntag already has the names all picked out for us: Jaquelin and Jillian! There ya go.


Baby A's arm and Baby B's Spine


Only one of the babies would give us a decent profile- they were moving around too much!

Bon appetit!

Above are some pictures we took at the local market around the corner. On the menu we have snake, turtle, and alligator. Mmmm!

 

I thought these babies weren't supposed to keep me awake all night until after they are born! Lately thing one and thing two have decided to start their boxing matches at around 12 pm. 

 

It's really hard for me to sleep when I feel like I have a squid living in my belly! I think they know that we're headed to the states soon and their getting a head start on the jet lag by staying up all night. Or maybe they're just as excited as I am to eat some decent food.

 

China would be a lovely place for someone that likes to diet, but its not so lovely for a pregnant American that has to eat a solid meal every couple of hours to even be able to function. I think I'm more excited to eat than I am to see our families! (That's a joke by the way)

 

My neighbor in the apartment above seems to have a certain affection for pounding at precise time intervals throughout the day: morning, noon, and night. Coincidentally, his "pounding time" seems to coincide perfectly with my "napping time." GRRR! In an attempt to keep me from doing some thing irrational I try to imagine that he is building some sort of beautiful sculpture.

 

But if he's going to keep it up much longer, it better be a sculpture akin to The David!!

 

Every so often Ezra and I run into other foreigners. When we do, we make sure to say hello. We love to find out what the heck they're doing in China.

 

We were in a little store scavenging for food when we ran into a cute gal from North Dakota. She and her husband are English teachers and they have a few young kids. We had a lovely little chat about where to find good vegetables and exchanged phone numbers. As we parted she explained that she had left her five-year-old daughter sitting on the front stairs and asked if we wouldn't mind checking on her as we left.

 

When we found the adorable little five year old, I noticed that she had a couple of gold fish in plastic bag.

 

Without thinking I said, "Are you going to eat those, or are they your pets?"

 

As soon I saw her horrified expression I realized what I had said. Of coarse she was not going to eat those pretty little fish. What kind of monster would ask such a question? She's not even a native!

 

My attempt to make her a friend was disastrous. She totally shut down and would not say another word to me.

 

Usually I have a much better way with children.

 

In defense of my behavior I have recently learned that rat is a delicacy in this area.

 

The thought of scarfing a goldfish doesn't seem sooo outlandish after all, right?!

 

Appropriately, Cat was the translator that informed Ezra and I of this. We asked her if she had eaten it herself. Her reply was "yes, it's delicious!"

 

Delicious! I should think not!

 

We explained to her that in the United States the consumption of such animals is unheard of.

 

It wasn't the next day when I saw a fat, foot long rat hanging out on the pathway to my apartment.  (Foot long only describes its body, its tail was not included in that measurement!) I never thought I'd be so scared of a stupid rodent. But it really threw me when it just sort of sat on the path and looked at me instead of scurrying away.

 

When I made it inside I texted Cat and told her that I had a huge rat for her. She texted back, "Great! Enjoy it!"

 

EVERYTHING is fair game in China as far as food is concerned. If can be boiled up or fried it's eaten. 

 

Our landlords Mrs. Who and Mr. Lue (no, that is not the correct spelling) graciously invited us to dinner. They took us to one of the fanciest restaurants I've ever been to in my life.

 

I knew we were going to be in trouble when we passed a poster of a gigantic cooked Salamander garnished with lettuce on our way into our private eating area.

 

The first thing they brought out was raw fish. The preparation of the fish went something like this:

 

Catch it, cut it into strips, and stick it on a plate.

 

The next fish they brought out was cooked, but it's eyeballs, scales, and bones were still fully intact. It's mouth was agape and its eye's were filled with its last plea for life, I couldn't just eat it!

 

At this point I started to worry, Mrs. Who and Mr. Lue are pretty much the nicest people ever and I knew they would not be happy if we didn't eat anything. I prayed for something edible. Luckily the next thing they brought out was soup. We carefully slurped and continued with some vegetables. We're not sure what kind of vegetables they were but they looked something like what you might find growing next to a canal bank in Idaho.

 

During the coarse of our meal we started talking about dogs. I said that I was surprised how many people I saw in Hong Kong eating with their dogs at their tables or even right in their laps. "So in China you can eat dog, with your dog."

 

Mrs. Who and Mr. Lu expressed their feelings on the subject and Cat who was translating said, "they don't like dogs, because the dogs, it produces the #$*!." Ezra and I started laughing and I explained to Cat that poop is probably a better word to use.

 

At the conclusion of dinner they brought out a drink- I got pretty excited when it looked similar to a pina colada, I just knew it had to be some sort of wonderful coconut juice. Boy was I wrong, the drink was basically warm puréed potato mixed with water. Gag.

 

While dinner was a disappointment, the company was great. Mrs. Who and Mr. Lue are such special people. Even though there is a language barrier we have felt so much love and generosity from them. 

 

And although our apartment floods were awful experiences we know that they were probably the necessary method for us to be able to form the relationship we have with these good people. We are so grateful for their friendship.

 

We tried to talk them into coming to the United States with us, but they think the same things about western food as we think about Chinese.