Luke's Dentist Appointment

Let me preface by saying that I am a terrible mother. I took Luke to the dentist at 3 and 3 1/2, but once we moved and the dentist was 40 minutes away, I slacked and didn't find a new one. It's not that I intended to, but I completely forgot until he turned 4 and I had to cancel at the old dentist, then I got pregnant and was sick for a couple of months, and then it just kept slipping my mind. So, my persistent husband reminded me that I needed to take him. I asked friends for referrals and got one that sounded good. I called yesterday and they said, "New patients can't be seen until November BUT we have an appointment tomorrow morning." Thinking that a) he really needed a check-up and b) November seems tough with two new babies, I took the appointment.

The place was awesome. The whole office was a jungle theme, including tiki looking stuff on the walls. Each area had a jungle-themed name (like the conference room was called "Tribal Council". How cute. They had Madagascar playing and a ton of stuffed animals and toys. When we were called back, each chair had a tv above it with Madagascar playing. Luke got to wear jungle sunglasses to not hurt his eyes from the bright light. The hygienist was so great with him. She told him what to expect and offered rewards for each step.

When we got to the teeth cleaning, he was offered an array of flavors to pick from. He chose cookie dough which sounded disgusting to me, but he liked it (so much he was licking while she was cleaning). She flossed his teeth for the first time and instructed me as to how to do it for him. He got a sticker and then it was time for x-rays.

He was a champ during the x-rays. They had to try a bunch of times to get one and he kept letting them. I was a proud momma. He got to get another sticker. Then we met with the dentist. She was awesome as well and had the best teeth I've ever seen (go figure, right). She said the tooth that he hit on the tub a couple of years ago was totally fine. She said his 6 year molars were showing up and he would have them early, which doesn't surprise me since he's always cut teeth fast and early. She said to continue brushing like we have been and start flossing and to come back in 6 months. Then Luke got to go to the treasure chest and got a parachute toy.

Overall it was an awesome visit and I felt better when they assumed it was his first visit as I guess most kids go at 4-5 years old. They even took a "first visit photo" to commemorate the occasion. I still want to be on the ball with his check-ups so he stays healthy and has good hygiene.

Homemade Pizza Night

Luke mentioned to me a couple of weeks ago that he would love to make homemade pizza again. We've done it a few times and it is always really fun. I make the dough in the bread machine, we use spaghetti sauce and mozzarella and parmesan cheese as well as any toppings that sound fun.

Last night we had turkey pepperoni, ground turkey, turkey bacon, and a variety of peppers. I usually like to have onions and pineapple as well, but I wasn't motivated to go back to the grocery store.

Here are some pics:

Lee making his pizza

Luke trying to toss his dough (he really got into it)

Luke putting on the sauce

Luke putting on his toppings (he made a smily face out of turkey pepperoni)

Our pizzas:
Top - Luke's - 1/2 turkey pepperoni, 1/2 turkey bacon
Bottom Left - Lee's - 3/4 turkey pepperoni, turkey bacon, and ground turkey, 1/4 turkey pepperoni and peppers
Bottom Right - Ashley's - 1/2 turkey pepperoni, turkey bacon, and ground turkey, 1/2 turkey pepperoni and peppers

They were sooooo yummy and we had a ton of leftovers. It is so much fun to do this and a fraction of the cost of one pizza from takeout. If I had to guess the cost, I would say less than $5.00 for all of them. 50c for the dough, 50c for the sauce, $1.00 for the cheese, $1.50 for the turkey pepperoni, 10c for the turkey bacon, $1.00 for the ground turkey, and 25c for the peppers.

What We've Been Up To

This summer has been really different for our family in that I've been massively pregnant for most of it and heat hasn't been my friend. We've still managed to go to the beach a few times - twice with Lee's mom and stepdad to Emerald Isle and once to Topsail to the Webber Beach Cottage. Most of the time was spent with me hanging out indoors (I did get down to the beach a handful of times and to the pool at the beach once or twice) and Lee and Luke doing the beach/pool by themselves. They still had fun and I had to get over my guilt of not being as involved.

Luke and I have gone to the pool a good amount, but not like we normally do (the past couple of summers we've gone at least 3 days a week). Each time has shown me how much bigger/more uncomfortable I am getting. Our last pool visit for the summer was on Monday. It proved to be too much for me and summer is winding down anyways.

We've had a lot of fun just hanging around the house. Luke is really getting good at coloring, painting, and crafts. ;) We play and I do a few things around the house and relax. It's been really nice. Although I feel bad that we can't do everything we normally do, we are all making the best of it. It's really been a fun summer overall. We are looking forward to Fall and our babies coming. :)

24 Week Ultrasound

Today we went for our 24 week ultrasound. It was awesome! Both babies are still perfect. We did some quick measurements, double checked the genders (nothing changed - thank GOD!), measured their heartbeats, saw them in 2D as much as we could (Nathan was hard to see), and then got a 3D of Alexis' face. It was incredible!

Nathan (Baby A) was 1 lb 8 oz (3 oz bigger than the average singleton at this point) and had a heartbeat of 143. He is also head down and very far down and will probably stay that way (not that it matters as I am having a c-section).

Alexis (Baby B) was 1 lb 10 oz (5 oz bigger than the average singleton at this point) and had a heartbeat of 145. She is breech (again it doesn't matter).

Here are the pictures. We didn't get many of Nathan, but we lucked out and got to see Alexis' sweet face in 3D.

Alexis' Sweet Face

Alexis' Profile

Howell Family Reunion

On Sunday we went to the 71st Annual Howell Family Reunion. The Howell family is Lee's mom's dad's parents and all of their descendants. They have been getting together for 71 years to eat a yummy meal, talk about family memories, and visit with each other. It was really neat to see all of the family members, catch up, and hear all of the funny stories. We had a really good time. The theme this year was "Trains" since there is a railroad track that runs right through Pikeville, NC, the town that most of the Howell family grew up in. Luke loved it. Here are some pictures.

Luke with the electric train. He built that bridge. I thought it was pretty creative.

Some of Clifton and Annie Mae Howell's (Lee's grandparents) great-grandchildren.

Me, Lee, and Luke.

Me and Lee.

Becky and Ivey (Lee's mom and step-dad). They made that train. I thought it was cute.

4th of July

We had a great 4th of July. We went to Topsail Island to the Webber Beach Cottage from Friday night through Wednesday night. It was awesome. The cottage had been completely redone by Aunt Peggy and she did an amazing job. We spent the week with Aunt Peggy, Uncle Larry, Jennifer, Aunt Trisha, Jay, Aunt Doris, Chris, Midge, and Katie. It was fun to see some of the Webber/Fulghum family. Luke had an absolute blast with Katie - they became best friends almost instantly.

We spent everyday on the beach, the boys more than me as it was too hot for a 5 month doubly pregnant woman. Luke went out in the ocean with Lee and jumped the [calm] waves, went on the boogy board (he got really good at it), frolicked in the water, and played in the sand (they built an awesome sand castle). We enjoyed the fireworks on the 3rd courtesy of Surf City. We went to Lee and his cousins' favorite childhood mini-golf place and played a round of mini-golf. The kids loved it, but I think the big kids loved it even more. We enjoyed some yummy ice cream after - there is something so great about a waffle cone of homemade ice cream at the beach.

It was a blast and hard to come home. I love making memories with our family. I look forward to going to the beach house every year and as our kids grow and our family grows it gets even more fun. Some of my favorite memories as a kid were our family vacations (especially to the beach).

Two for One Special Blog

After much thought, I realized that this blog is supposed to be our family blog, hence the name "Ash & Lee Plus 3". Unfortunately, I have been only blogging about the twins and my pregnancy. I decided that I would create a blog just for the twins. It's called "Two for One Special" and can be found at http://241special.blogspot.com/.

I will still post things on this blog about the twins as they are a part of our family, but I will put detailed stuff about my pregnancy, their birth, and raising them on their blog. I hope you will check it out and follow if you like it. This blog will have more about our family and what we are up to like our life, vacations, pics, more about Luke (and the twins), and just be an "all about the Webber family" blog. I hope you still read and enjoy it.