Update on Maranda

After another fun adventure in Labor and Delivery (L&D) again last night, we go for another ultrasound today! This ultrasound was already scheduled and had nothing to do with the visit to the hospital.

Everything is going well though. Maranda hasn’t dilated any more than she was, and our favorite nurse, Gail, told us that she still seemed a long way from going into pre-term labor. That’s always good to hear.

Maranda is now 31 weeks and 3 days into her pregnancy, and we’re pulling for at least 2 and a half more weeks before the big day. I am pulling more for 3 or 4 weeks. 37 weeks would be ideal for me, but Maranda might not agree at this point.

She’s still very uncomfortable, as one can imagine. Just keep praying for her. She really has been a trooper during this whole experience. I know I couldn’t have handled it as well. It just makes me wonder how merciful she will be for pregnant women of singletons after this.

I imagine she will be wearing the shirt above in the very near future. ~A

Double Rainbows, Double Portions

Some of you have may have heard others allude to the rainbow story, but it is far more than just a story. And many of you who do not live in Nashville probably have no idea what I'm talking about, but we feel it is important to share what the Lord is doing. I will warn you, though. This will be a LONG posting.

First off, Maranda and I, along with our church family at Spirit of Life, believe that God still speaks today and speaks to every individual who will take the time to listen. And we believe God spoke a special message to us in the early stages of Maranda’s pregnancy. This message has been spoken to others as well since then, only confirming God’s word to us.

A little after Maranda found out that she was pregnant, Pastor Fran Schaub at our church felt impressed by the Lord that the next pregnancy at the church would be a sign and message from the Lord. God kept telling her that she would receive a phone call about a baby. We already knew that Maranda was pregnant, so we never thought that it would be us.

Around this same time, we were driving home from work. I sometimes make Maranda a little nervous, so she was driving this particular day (which proved to also be of the Lord’s design). It had been raining that day, but the skies had parted. The sun was beginning to shine through. That’s when I noticed a tiny sliver of a rainbow in the clouds.

Something inside me became very, very excited—much like a child would be. “Look, Maranda… a rainbow!” I shouted. She saw it, but she didn’t get as excited as I did. Then, the rainbow began to grow, both in size and intensity. I became ecstatic! “Wow! Look!” I cried as I kept repositioning myself to see it better. Soon, a full rainbow was spanning the sky. It was so bright that it looked electric, as if God had plugged it directly into a light socket.

I was unglued at this point. But then, above the rainbow, another fainter rainbow began to appear. It also filled in across the sky until we driving right into a full double rainbow! (Much like the one in the picture above that I found from www.gdargaud.net. ) Being such a mighty man of God, I saw no spiritual significance at the time.

It was days later when Maranda told me that God had spoken to her. She said that the Lord was trying to tell me something about the rainbows. Maranda NEVER does this, so when she tells me that God told her something, I pay attention! So I began to think about provision and God’s covenant with us and what else He might have to speak to me.

And there was more. We went for our first doctor’s visit, and we discovered that we were having twins! Things began to make sense. We called Pastor Fran, and she began to laugh and laugh and laugh. And then, I began to laugh and laugh and laugh. She told me, “This is it! This is it, Alan! This is what God has been telling me about… God is speaking to us about a double portion.”

God began to speak mightily about these girls, giving us Isaiah 61:7, which says, “Instead of your shame, you will have a double portion. Instead of your humiliation, you will shout for joy over your portion. Therefore, they will possess a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs.”

This all happened sometime in early, early summer. Then in October, a Christian prophet by the name of Kim Clement gave an astounding Word of the Lord as confirmation to us. He said:

"Twins born rapidly through the Nation and through the world shall be a sign of the double portion and the multiplication. The statistics shall be known and factual, and they shall speak about the fact that there are more twins born in these few years, than have ever been born in the history of mankind. This shall be a sign that multiplication has begun," says the Lord. "There will be double rainbows. There will be double births." God says, "It is a time for My people to rejoice for certainly the season of multiplication has begun," says the Lord!

Yes, you are reading that correctly. Double rainbows. Double births. God is doing something, and He is doing something BIG. We are very excited and honored that God has already begun speaking through our children to us. We can only wait and watch what the Lord will do next! ~A

Trading Spaces: From Womb to Room

I cannot tell you how pleased we are with the girls' room! The nursery is complete, and the only things we are lacking in there are babies! Obviously they won't be sleeping in there for a while. They will be in the cradle and bassinet we have in our room.

But still, we wanted to show you the craftiness of Maranda's mother--Kim. She did the painting (free-hand, mind you), and she even made the bedding, window dressings, and seat cushions for the room. Even though I thought that they nursery would look like a hippie haven, it really did turn out nicely.

God truly has provided. I don't know if we have even bought a fraction of what is in this room. We have been so blessed by people just giving us things, and it means so much to Maranda and me. Thank you to everyone who has given us ANYTHING for the girls. We deeply appreciate it. ~A

By Popular Demand...

Many of you could not imagine Maranda having much of a waist, and you have demanded pictures to see her and her doubly pregnant self. So Maranda agreed to a little photo shoot here at Coulter Studios to show off her midriff one more time before becoming a mother.

This picture was actually taken a week or two ago, so she actually is a little larger now. She is 30 weeks tomorrow, and the babies weigh right around 3 to 3.5 lbs each. They are actually measuring a little ahead of schedule, which is more than okay with us. We're on track to deliver right around Christmas, according to the last nurse we saw at the hospital. Our prayer right now is to avoid the NICU, and we know that God has complete control over everything. He has ordained these little ones prophetically--which I will explain later in an upcoming posting on this blog.

Just as an aside, Maranda and I are attending child birth classes this weekend at Summit Medical Center where she will be delivering. Maranda isn't learning a whole lot, but I have found some of it helpful. I have learned some things that really aren't publishable here, but you mothers can only imagine the education I am getting firsthand.

And just to brag on Maranda a little bit, she is doing really well. She is taking her Turb regularly to ensure that she doesn't continue in pre-term labor, even though the medicine does not make her feel like herself. It makes her a bit jittery, and I know she would rather not take it. Already, she is sacrificing her own wants for those of our children.

And I might add that she looks beautiful. I am not just saying that because she is my wife. Many people have commented at how pretty she is, and they are shocked because she is so pregnant. That is not to say that Maranda always feels beautiful, but she is gorgeous nonetheless. I would even go so far as to say that she glows--as cliche as that sounds. ~ A

Sooner than You Think

Maranda and I had another fun visit to the hospital the other night. She had done too much housework that week, and sure enough, the contractions fired up again. After four hours of them, we headed back to the hospital in order to get another shot of Turb. Thank the Lord that she didn't get as sick as the first time.

The next day she had an appointment with the doctor. The due date has still not shifted back from January 21, but everyone seems to know that the girls won't be waiting that long.

The nurse practitioner surprised us a bit by saying that if the twins would wait until 6-8 more weeks, they would be thrilled. ... For those of you who don't have a calendar in front of you:

Six weeks = December 10

Eight weeks = December 24

We might as well stick bows on their heads, as the odds are getting better and better that we will have Christmas babies. ~A

Ultrasound 10/24/06

Well, we weren't as thrilled with this ultrasound experience as we were on the last ones. The tech did not seem to know exactly what he was doing, saying it had been a while since he had done an multiples ultrasound. But toward the end, he seemed to get the hang of it and took the time to explain some of the features we were seeing.

The girls definitely look the cutest they have ever been. They're already over 2.5 lbs, and there is a chance that Maranda is further along than we thought. We will check with the doctor next week since we have doubts about this tech. He estimated that she was around a week and half further along than was originally estimated. That moves the due date back to January 15 or so. So we'll see...

In the first picture, you can see a slight profile, but you can see she has her arms reaching up with clenched fists.

In the second picture, you can see the right side of one's face. She has her lips puckered up. Maybe she's giving kisses... or maybe she's just hungry. It was definitely past supper time.

They were extremely active in this ultrasound. They way they are situated right now, is one is head down and the other is a little higher and to the right of her. Dr. McCullough is very optimistic that if one is lined up to be delivered vaginally, that the second baby could flip to the correct position after the first one is born.

We're just praying right now that Maranda will deliver both the same way--either both vaginally or both by Cesarian. ~A

Just for Kicks

The girls have been playing with Maranda in Dreamland. For the past two evenings, Maranda has dreamed that one of the girls stretches out so far that she can see the entire foot, complete with little toes. The only thing we can figure is that the girls must be awake while she sleeps and that they kick and play while she’s trying to rest. Hopefully their schedules will get to be more with ours before they arrive. …. Please, God?

Madelyn and Maleah are starting to respond to our voices now. I started talking to the girls last night, and one started kicking. At least we know that she hears us. I am sure that they can hear Maranda much more clearly than they can hear me, but Maranda was reading somewhere recently that around this point the girls will become more active at the sounds of our voices. Sure enough, they are.

Until we actually get to hold them, we’re looking forward to each doctor’s visit and ultrasound. Today was go for another to make sure everything looks good and to see if they are growing at the same rate. I don’t know how detailed these pictures will be, but they should be better than the last ones since we will be going to Labor & Delivery to have it done.I will keep you posted! ~A

The nursery is really starting to look like the girls' room. Kim spent this weekend painting lilac walls and freehanded music staffs and flowers on the walls with lyrics to "Jesus Loves Me" and "You are My Sunshine." (Thanks, YaYa!) Hopefully we can get some digital pictures of the nursery up soon for you all to see.

God really has been good to us. People have been blessing us with gifts and hand-me-downs. Someone from our church actually gave us a crib, which means we only have to buy ONE! Let's just pray that I can actually put the thing together!

Maranda is now on home rest from work. She had another bout with contractions and had her first experience with Turb. Turb is a drug injection which helps stop contractions. However, the nurse described Turb as having the effects of twelve shots of espresso all at once... And I think that was pretty accurate. But you will have to ask Maranda for yourself. Her eyes got bulging and glassy, her hands and feet would not be still, and her ten-minute high slowly gave way to feeling extremely sick. Needless to say, Maranda does not want to have to take Turb again.

We go back for another ultrasound on October 24. So you know what that means.... MORE PICTURES!!!

Braxton Hiccups

Maranda and I had a little excitement the other day when the wonderful Braxton Hicks contractions began full force. She had a little more contractions than we would have liked, and per the doctor’s orders, they asked her to come to the hospital to be monitored and to see if we could get the contractions to stop.

It took a little over two hours, and everything is fine. Maranda is still having a hard time sitting up straight without having some tightening. So please be praying that the contractions will ease up to a healthy level until the babies are fully developed and ready to be born.

But we actually did have a good time listening to the babies on the monitor while at the hospital. I had gone downstairs to get Maranda some dinner in the cafeteria (chicken tenders, of course), and when I came back, I could hear the heart beats from the doorway.

I also heard this really loud WHOMP every now and then. It sounded like the babies were actually hitting the monitor, but it didn’t sound like a kick or a punch. It sounded too soft for that. We didn’t ask Gail (our wonderful, wonderful nurse) for a while, but she said that it was probably one of the girls having the hiccups.

It's Raining Pink!

Right now, our living room looks like bottle of Pepto exploded all over our chair and spilled into the floor. But we're pretty happy about it.

This Saturday, our family in Sale Creek and Dayton threw us a baby shower, and we were amazed at how much people bought for us. Most outfits came in twos, and we received many baby blankets, diapers, bottles, bibs, and bottle brushes.

We also got the Pack-N-Play that we wanted, and the girls now each have a Bumbo seat each. There were also some toys, children's books, and lots of good food.

Maranda and I definitely appreciate everything that people gave us, and we look forward to putting each item to good use.

Spirit of Life Church is also throwing us a shower this month (14th). God truly is keeping His Word. He told Maranda that these girls would be fully provided for, and so far, He has meant that literally. ~A

Getting Stronger

I finally got to feel the babies yesterday! Up until now, Maranda has been having all of the fun, getting to feel the little ones play around in there. Well, I’m sure it’s not always fun, especially since one of them seems to be quite the kicker.

But finally, when Maranda was sitting on the couch, one of the girls seems a little riled up. She asked me to come over and to see if I could feel it, and sure enough, she gave one big push against my palm. It’s not what I expected. I thought that the kicks would be sharper and quicker, but this one pushed outward slowly. It was really neat. Maybe she was stretching more than kicking. Either way, I am just glad that I get to finally feel my babies instead of having to ask all of the time if they are moving or not.

It’s still pretty early for me to be able to feel them. The readings we have say that fathers usually feel the babies around 28 weeks, but we are only at week 23! We still have a while to go, but for those of you who want to know… the babies are probably about 1.5 lbs each now. ~A

Face of One

This one is a little bit harder to see. The baby is laying on her side, and she's facing toward you.The forehead is is the darker area on the left, and you can see her right eye really well. I think she has a hand curled up under her chin.

If you have a better understanding of what all is in this picture, feel free to leave a comment. ~A

Photo of Heads

This picture is of the other end. Since they were in the same position, they were "spooning" in the womb.

You can see how close the babies' heads are together. I think this is similar to how they were before.

New Ultrasound Pictures!

Another perk to having twins means more frequent ultrasounds. Even though the pictures from the ultrasounds done in the doctor's office are not of such high quality as the ones done previously at the hospital, we wanted to include some of them on the blog for people back home.

This picture is of the twins' rumps and thighs. The tech told us that this picture is very rare because it shows the twins in the exact same position. This hardly ever happens. ~A&M

Strong Women

Right now, I’m still trying find time to finish The Tender Bar by JR Moehringer. Today I read about JR’s grandmother, an avid storyteller who was worn by an abusive husband. Moehringer paints his grandmother so vividly and so poetically, I could not help but draw parallels with my own grandmother—another woman who can tell a heck of a story and who survived an alcoholic husband (who thankfully changed his ways).

It made me think of a CD I have been listening to for almost 24 hours. Last night, a friend of mine gave me a copy of the CD Woman King by Iron & Wine. The entire CD sings stories about strong women, and I must admit the lyrics are amazing. (Thank you, Collin. I think I am already driving Maranda crazy with placing the songs on repeat.)

With my life surrounded by strong, amazing women and storytelling, I began to think about my daughters. I pictured myself telling them stories—but not about castles and princesses. I foresee myself telling them the true stories of the women who each had a part in birthing them, in one way or another. I want to liberate my daughters before society gets the chance to dictate weakness to them.

I want to tell them about Arsula Gravett, their great-grandmother who survived the depression, birthed five children at home, and still hears God as if He were drinking coffee with her in her house up on the hill.

I want to tell them about Loa Kendrick, a great-great-grandmother who still is a talented artist and craftswoman and still has plenty of fire left in her to warm the coldest of rooms.

I want to tell them about Mildred Coulter O’Neal, a great-grandmother who was one of the earliest female basketball players in Tennessee, who played Center when the Center actually stood at mid-court and each half had three-on-three under each basket.

I want to tell them about Kim McBath, their grandmother who never stops for a second and can practically do anything she envisions in her mind.

I want to tell them about Linda Isbill, their great-grandmother who can feed an army of relatives with her cooking, take care of the whole family, and still have time to enjoy the flowers.

I want to tell them about Angie Sharp and Megan McBath, their aunts who both were talented athletes, tough as nails, but have the tenderest of hearts.

I want to tell them about Kathryn Coulter, their grandmother who raised a brilliant son and taught him about God in a way only she could and who understands and values the importance of family—regardless of the miles between them.

I want to tell them about Maranda Coulter, their mother who was strong enough to deny her own wants and desires to help support their father while he finished graduate school.

But as a man, I want to be sure that the strength Maleah and Madelyn possess does not stem from a father who neglected them or caused them to guard against pain. I want their strength to grow from security in who they are, in freedom of expression, in hope that dreams do not have to remain distant goals. I want them to realize that they will become what they set their minds to and that their mother and I will do anything we can to get them there. ~A

The Labor Day before the Labor

Because Maranda is pregnant with twins, we cannot travel past the last week of October. By travel, I mean that Maranda cannot go further than an hour away from the hospital where she plans to deliver.

Checking our schedules this week, Maranda realized that October is almost packed, so if are going to visit family and friends in East Tennessee, we would need to do so in September. So this weekend, we are heading back to Greenback and Maryville to see Maranda’s side of the family. On the last weekend of September, we’ll travel back to Sale Creek and Dayton for my side of the family and the baby shower Mom is throwing for us at White Oak Baptist. It will be good to see everyone.

After that, we won’t be traveling home until February or March 2007. It seems so odd not to be going home for Thanksgiving or Christmas. At least East Tennessee can come to us this year. We could be separated like many of the Armed Forces around the globe. In comparison, three hours doesn’t seem that far away. ~A

A Proper Upbringing

For those of you who might be concerned, Maranda and I have committed to raising our children in the way they should go--as Tennessee Vols fans. Even though we now live further from Neyland Stadium and Thompson-Boling Arena than we did in our own childhoods, the tradition will remain a necessity for another Coulter generation.

And just a kindly reminder to the friends of ours who are not necessarily fond of Rocky Top and who insist on purchasing anything with a Dawg, Gator, or Elephant on it, please refrain. These gifts will quickly find their ways to the bottom of the nearest diaper bin. :-)

Scriptures to Pray

Just as a side note for those of you praying for us, we are standing on Isaiah 61 and Psalm 91 during and after the pregnancy. Maranda is making a more complete prayer list, but if you would pray these Scriptures over us, we would be greatly appreciative. We know that prayer works, and we know the Word works. So praying the Word is only doubly effective.

God bless,
A

POTATO SALE

The Nashville area has a great organization (some might call it a support group) for the parents of multiples. POTATO--Parents of Twins and Triplets Organization--meets once per month with a keynote speaker and then breaks off into groups to discuss the special moments, both positive and negative, one encounters when tackling to raise more than one infant at a time.

This past Saturday was the POTATO Sale, an annual consignment sale that is open to the public. The first day of the sale is open only to POTATO members (which we are not), and then, the second day is open to others; all parents of singletons, twins, and triplets are welcome to attend.

Maranda's brother Matthew, her sister Megan, and her mother Kim came over this weekend for the sale and to bring some items from back East. We were so blessed to have them come over. We were able to pick up a glider rocker, a bouncy seat that Megan took from under the nose of another prospective buyer, and a diaper champ--not to mention a ton of baby clothes. Most of the baby clothes came from a yard sale nearby. Twenty-five cents an outfit? Can't beat it.

As time goes by, it's definitely starting to sink in that the girls are real and are coming--ready or not. People seemed surprised that I am so excited about having two girls, but why not? I mean, they're my girls. Two pieces of me are going to be walking around on this planet, and I'm never going to be able to get those pieces back. It's settled: I will be a blubbering ball of mush for the rest of my life, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
~A

I like to kiiickk and streeetch and kiickk....

I have been feeling the girls move sporadically over the past few weeks. Two days ago was the first strong kicks I have felt. We definitely have one with strong legs! I haven't felt too many strong kicks like that yet, but that first one was a little surprising. The kicks were up kinda high and felt like a sequence of syncopated thumps.

Yesterday I sneezed and apparently one of the girls didn't like that, so she gave me a hard kick or two for that.

I have discovered that they enjoy M&M Sonic blasts as much as I do! After having one yesterday, they moved around in there all afternoon. I'm convinced it was their way of letting me know I should eat more "blasts".

I'm looking forward to more thumps, and hopefully they'll go easy on me as they continue to grow stronger.