A love so pure and true ...

Happy one-year anniversary to my Sammy and his bebe, a true tale of love at first sight.

Merry Christmas to you!

The daycare quandry update ...

It always amazes me how things seem to figure themselves out, right when I'm at the point of thinking I'm really, really stuck. The boys and I were going to school (I know, I can't stay away) on Tuesday afternoon, and I stopped in and talked to the student services woman who has been such a wonderful friend and mentor to me over the past 2 years. She is a JD/MSW and works with all the students who need accommodations -- for physical/mental/emotional issues, etc. Pregnancy is one of the areas she covers, so we have worked really closely for the past 2 years. When I was talking to her, she told me she had a suggestion, and would call me later that day.

I got a phone call from her, telling me that she was putting me in contact with a neighbor of hers, a 20-year old girl who is studying abroad during the spring semester, but doesn't leave until February. This girl, unfortunately, leaves at the beginning of February, but I decided to talk to her, anyway. She is wonderful! She came over to visit yesterday afternoon and stayed for 2 and a half hours, and the boys both loved. Sam warmed up immediately, which is unusual for him, and wanted to sit on her lap and give her hugs and kisses. She is definitely a possibility for us, and would allow us a great deal of flexibility because she obviously wants as many hours as possible before heading to Rome.

I also found a daycare center on the same road as my Bar review course, and that center could take the boys for 4 and a half hours a day. That is another real possibility for us, as it would be good for the boys to be out of the house and interacting with other kids. I do worry about the lack of flexibility, and getting the three of us out the door by 8am every morning. I also worry about all of the germs and chronic illness while studying for the Bar.

All in all, I feel great about the 2 options we have regarding childcare, and I know that we'll make the choice that we feel is best for us at this point. Yeah for options!

** On a funny side note, when I was at school visiting the student support woman, another professor stopped in to say hello, and to see what the commotion was about (Sam + Ben = commotion). The professor and I were introduced, and the student services woman said, "Remember the story about the student I met with, who I didn't think looked like she felt very well, but insisted she was fine, and then the student went to class and her water broke? Well, this is Erin." The professor laughed and said, "Oh, you're THAT girl. You're quite a legend around here." That made me laugh -- good to know I've left my mark on UCONN Law.

I have been SUCH a good boy ...

but my twin ...


** Photo from Mothers of Twins holiday party. Photo from visit to Santa at the mall to follow ...**

Deep breaths to avoid hyperventilating ...

Oh man. So, the babysitter we hired in the beginning of October, and with whom we discussed both the fall schedule and the January/February Bar review course schedule, just informed me that she has another job opportunity 3 days a week, and can watch the boys the other 2 days. Well, that is a wonderful offer. However, Bar review course is 5 days a week. I think that I'm going to be able to piece together a schedule of babysitters, but that turmoil and lack of consistency really seems to bother my boys. We pay our sitters $15/hour -- and I would think at that rate, we would be able to find someone reliable, who wanted as many hours from us as s/he could possibly get. And this is exactly why I am keeping my fingers crossed that the boys will get into one of the daycare centers we've been waitlisted for for the past 2 years once I start working ...

I could always take the night course -- but I'm not sure I would be able to handle 6 - 10pm Monday-Friday after taking care of two toddlers all day.

I seriously feel like I'm going to cry.

And, just like that ...

it is over! Three and a half years after first stepping foot on the UCONN Law campus, I am officially finished with law school (assuming I passed all of my courses!). As I walked out of my last final last night, I almost expected a Mardi-Gras band to meet me at the classroom door to parade back to my car or something. Instead, I walked by myself across a deserted campus in the 17 degree night air, and reflected about all that has happened on that campus, how my life has so significantly changed on several times while standing on that very campus.

When I began law school, we had only been married a few days because of my early acceptance at the school, and I was certainly unprepared for what was in store. I remember parking my car the first day of orientation and having a "What have I gotten myself into?!" moment of panic, which quickly dissipated as orientation began and I immediately met a few people who are today some of my closest friends. First year of law school and first year of marriage proved to be a challenge, especially when undertaken at the first time, and I felt a tremendous sense of accomplishment to finish 1L.

I remember pacing around the quad September of my second year, as I tried to gather to courage to call my OB to make that first pregnancy appointment. A home pregnancy test had already confirmed "PREGNANT" to me in big, bold letters, but actually saying those words to anyone else, other than my husband, seemed too daunting a task. The poor receptionist -- all I could tell her was, "It has been 6 weeks since I had my period ..." I had to let her come to her own conclusions!

I was standing in that same quad 6 months later,once again on the phone with my OB, and once again refusing to acknowledge the situation in which I found myself. I couldn't tell the nurse my water had broken -- but instead, kept telling her that I was "leaking" -- I just couldn't bring myself to say those words, to acknowledge that my boys would be making their appearance in early March instead of mid-May.

The law school was my prison, as I returned in the fall and was forced to drop my 5-month old babies at daycare. The law school was also where I realized just how difficult it would be to balance being a mother and being a career woman, as I spent countless hours in the family room pumping between classes, or as I pushed the double stroller across campus, dressed in a suit, on my way to an interview with my children in tow.

I watched my friends, classmates, peers graduate in May and felt pangs of jealousy that they were done with school, that they were celebrating this huge accomplishment -- and now here I am. UCONN does not celebrate off-semester graduations, but I have the option of participating in the May ceremony. I am hoping to have my brother, a lawyer admitted in MD, be admitted to CT for a day so that he is able to "hood me," the official last step to becoming a JD. If he is able to do it, Sam and Ben will be able to help him, and I want them to be a part of the ceremony for me -- because without the intense love and dedication I feel for them and the responsibility I feel to provide for them, I don't think I would have gotten through law school.

I received a delivery yesterday morning -- an Ed*ble Arrangement -- and the poor delivery man, when I opened the card and read it as I signed for the package, I started to cry. It was from my brother and sister-in-law, and the gesture was so appreciated and the card showed just how genuinely proud they are of me for this accomplishment.

So, that's it. Now it's time to enjoy the holidays and prepare for Bar review class ...

Breaking and Entering -- the aftermath

A couple of days ago, my body was so sore in random places and I couldn't figure out why -- until the bruises started appearing. It took me a while to figure out why I had so many new bruises -- and then it all dawned on me! Scaling a 2nd story window without thinking about what I was doing definitely left me battered and bruised. Here are a few of the best ones...