preparedness

Hi! Well, another thrilling day on the couch! Well, mostly. I first had a doctor's appointment this morning, just to check in. She wanted to check my weight to see if I had gained any more. I haven't; which isn't really THAT impressive since it was just done on Tuesday. But she wants to watch my fluid retention closely. So, my blood pressure is still awesome, and I have just scant amounts of protein in my urine; so, so far, still no preeclampsia. I am going to start going to the doctor once a week now, just to keep an eye on things, which is good.

I honestly cannot believe how close it's all getting. After yesterday, we really feel like we need to just get everything all prepared. Because you just never know! So, this weekend, all the baby clothes, sheets and blankets will be washed, more diapers will be purchased, and our house will be cleaned (though not by us; yay for groupon! 3 1/2 hours of cleaning for $60? Score!).

But it still doesn't feel like we're prepared. I know you probably never DO feel ready, but it seriously still just feels like a dream that in just a matter of weeks (or sooner?), we'll have two new family members. Two tiny little family members that are completely dependant on us. Whoa.
Anyway....this week the babies are each the size of pineapples. That's crazy! Pineapples are not small, people!

Ready or not, these babies will be here in a few weeks. And even though I don't feel technically prepared; I've never felt more ready. Can't wait to meet my girls!

Have a lovely Memorial Day weekend, all!

~M



my unexpected trip

As I mentioned yesterday, I am staying home from work the rest of this week due to the swelling in my legs and feet. It has worked out fine so far; I'm actually able to do a decent amount of work from home, so that's helpful.

On Tuesday when I went to the doctor, they drew some blood to do some tests for other symptoms that may point to preeclampsia. I wasn't too worried, since my blood pressure has been normal, and no protein has shown up in my urine. I DO have Shrek-like feet; but other than that, I feel ok. However, this morning I got a call from my doctor, who said that my blood results were back and that my blood platelet count was low, and that I should go to the hospital right now to get checked out. This can apparently be another indicator of preeclampsia.

I was sort of half listening to her and half panicking in my head. She said the phrase, "I'm hoping we won't have to deliver you today"; something I hadn't really considered until she mentioned it. So, I listened to her tell me that I shouldn't worry too much, that she was just trying to be cautious since my pregnancy was high risk, and something like preeclampsia could progress quickly; so we don't want to miss anything. Still though, she said I should pack a bag in case, because I might need to spend the night.

Once I was off the phone I felt a tad overwhelmed, trying to think of everything I needed to put in my bag; all the while NOT trying to think about my 33 week old babies that would most likely be fine if we had to deliver them, but I'd much rather they stay inside and cook a little longer.

A shower, a change of clothes and a 20 minute car ride later; I was at the hospital. My wonderful husband met me there. It didn't really become very real feeling until I was all checked in, and told to change into my gown and then hooked up to 3 monitors; one for Baby A, one for Baby B, and one to measure contractions. I also had a blood pressure cuff put on. Then it started to feel very real.

Here was the monitor by my bedside:

The heart rates of the babies were awesome, which was good. I had a tiny bit of protein in my urine- but not enough to really indicate preeclampsia. The bed was REALLY uncomfortable. I was so uncomfortable for hours. You're not allowed to lay flat on your back in your 3rd trimester, so I was on my back with a couple of rolled up bedsheets underneath my right hip. After about 20 minutes of laying that way, my left hip and lower back started hurting so badly. But, not much to be done. I tried to shift a couple of times, but that just shifted the babies' heart rate monitors; so I mostly had to stay still.

After a couple of hours, I got some blood drawn, so that they could check my platelet levels again. I had 3 blood pressure readings done; all normal. My feet and legs were still gigantic however.

After more hours of waiting, the high risk OB, Dr. Wong, came in and talked to me about the results. My platelets were now normal. My blood pressure was normal, and so was my urine. So, they were letting me go. All the doctors I spoke to that day, however, made it very clear that I could just be on my WAY to getting preeclampsia, and that I'd have to be monitored closely.

But for today, I got to go home. Home with my babies still safe inside me where they belong. A huge relief.

The doctors both apologized that I had to come in, which I just completely dismissed. I would go to the hospital every day if I had to, to make sure my girls were going to be safe!
All in all, a slightly stressful day; but I feel happy now, knowing that for now they're just fine, and so am I. I don't know yet if I'll have to continue on bed rest; my doctor will probably tell me tomorrow. I'd be ok with it, but it's not my favorite option. Of course I won't fight it; it's just that even these last 2 days of semi-bed rest have been hard and a little boring. So... a possible 4-5 more weeks does NOT sound appealing. We'll see though.

One day at a time.

~M

P.S. If you are having an alcoholic beverage of any type right now, you could go back and re-read this entry and play a drinking game I like to call "take a drink every time Mariah says 'preeclampsia'". Fun for everyone!

weekly wednesday update

This weekly Wednesday update is coming to you from my living room. That's right; I am stuck at home on the couch for the rest of the week. I saw my doctor yesterday, and she was concerned with the amount of edema (fluid retention) I have in my legs and feet. It has gotten pretty bad, so I've been confined to my house for the rest of this week to put my feet up and see if the fluid will go down a little. No fun! So far, my blood pressure is normal still, so there's not a worry of pre-eclampsia yet. I go in again on Friday to check in again.

How far along? 32 weeks 6 days!

Total weight gain/loss: As you may remember, 2 weeks ago at my last appointment I gained 7 pounds in two weeks, for a grand total of 24 pounds. Well, this week was even worse. I gained TEN pounds in two weeks. Now, by looking down at my legs, calves, ankles and feet I know that most of this is fluid. But it still sucks. I'm now up a total of 34 pounds. Ugh. I can feel it, too. My doctor really wants to try and get some of this fluid gone; so I'm hoping this bed rest helps.

Stretch marks? Yes.

Maternity clothes? Yep. But today it's just a maternity tshirt and jammies. I guess if I'm going to include a photo in this post I should change my clothes. :)

Sleep: Oh, it's pretty much the same. Not great, but I'm used to it.

Best moment this week: I was walking across town earlier this week, and it was pretty hard. I was huffing and puffing a bit, and just feeling huge. Then a random lady smiled at me and I smiled back. Then she said "You just look so cute!". I sure didn't FEEL cute, but it made me feel really good. :) Thanks, random lady

Movement: Yep! And also recently, they have finally been getting the hiccups. It's really cute. I THINK it's Baby B getting them, but it's hard to tell. I love it though!

Food cravings: Nope!

Genders: Still two girls!

Labor Signs: Still the occasional Braxton Hicks contractions. Also, at my checkup yesterday she checked my cervix. It's still closed, but it's apparently softening up. My doctor said it doesn't mean a lot, but it is progress!

Belly Button in or out? I think it’s as out as it’s going to get.

What I miss: Still missing having normal sized feet and legs.

Weekly Wisdom: It's kind of crazy how much things change each week when you get to the third trimester! Each week seems so different than the last.

What I am looking forward to: Meeting our girls! I don't want them to come yet, but every week that goes by it just becomes more and more real; and I get more and more excited!

Milestones: I feel like hitting 33 weeks is a milestone. It's just so crazy to me how close we are!

And here's me, 32 weeks, 6 days! No work bathroom pic today; so my bedroom will have to do instead. Not sure why the quuality is so bad, but oh well. Puffy face, and tired eyes, but have to post a pic every week to keep a record!

 

~ M

P.S. Thanks for all of your votes; I really appreciate it! We're up to # 42- yay!

a sticky situation part deux

Hello everyone! So sorry for the lack of posting yesterday; it was a hectic day and I just didn’t have the time. I promise to be better about making sure I post daily, so you don't think I went into labor. :) (Sorry, Kristin!) Also, btw, if I DO go into labor, I'll do a really short post just so you'll know; I promise!

It’s so crazy to me how close it’s getting to “baby time”! I mean, I’m HOPING it’s not super soon; because I want them to keep growing. But, I’m almost at 33 weeks- so, we’re only like 5 weeks out if I go all the way to 38. That is CRAZY to me!

Ian and I knocked out some more things on our “to-do” list this weekend, including writing a birth plan. I felt weird writing a birth plan, because honestly, I trust my doctor so much. I just feel like she’ll always do what’s best for me. However, I need to remember that I won’t be dealing with her for most of it; it will be nurses instead, that don’t know me at all. So, a birth plan is a good idea. We found a template online for twins and used that. I think ours is pretty laid back compared to others. Did any of you write a birth plan? Did you find it was helpful? I already know that with a birth plan, you also have to be prepared to throw it all out the window, because birth is unpredictable. But I think it will be a helpful starting point.

Anyway, I think our list is getting closer and closer to done. I have a three day weekend coming up, so I’m going to try and get even more done. I love crossing things off of lists!

I have TWO doctor appointments today. First one was this morning, with my hematologist. If you’ll recall, I have Factor V (five) Leiden, which is a blood clotting disorder that causes my blood to clot too easily. So, all throughout my pregnancy I’ve been giving myself injections of the blood thinner Lovenox each morning. Well, Lovenox lasts 24 hours. Since I am now getting close to when the delivery could happen any day, they need to switch me to a thinner that doesn’t last as long, should I need emergency surgery. So, my hematologist gave me my prescription for Heparin today. It lasts 12 hours instead of 24, which means I have to do two injections a day. Boo. I also have to load the needles up myself, which I’m not looking forward to. The Lovenox needles were pre-loaded with my 60mg of medicine, but with the Heparin, I have to actually use an empty needle and load it up with the tiny vial of medicine. Then I get to tap the needle and squirt out the bubbles like they do on TV. I know; exciting. :)

My second appointment is my bi-weekly OB appointment. I’m wondering if soon she’ll switch me to once a week visits. Ian and I made a list of questions we have for her, and I have them all typed in to my phone so that I won’t forget. If I don’t do this, I ALWAYS forget to ask all of my questions.

I’m excited about my week. Tomorrow I have a facial (using a gift certificate from Ian and my in-laws for my birthday), and Friday I have a manicure pedicure (using ANOTHER gift certificate from my friends Wendy and Jamie). THEN, Saturday I have someone coming in to clean my house! I bought two Groupons for 3 ½ hours of cleaning each, so I’ll use one this weekend and another a few weeks from now. So excited for that! I’ve never had someone clean my house before; it feels super fancy. So, I have a week of pampering ahead of me. Yay!

And, because I like to include pictures whenever I can; here is a photo of my disappearing lap, taken on my subway ride home. Not much room left for my purse, as you can see. Or, maybe you can't see. It's really not a very interesting or good photo.

That’s about it! Enjoy your day!

~M

baby stats

First of all; Happy Friday to everyone! So glad the weekend is here!

This morning I went in for my growth ultrasound; because with twins you really have to monitor their growth and the difference between the two. My favorite part of each ultrasound is the very beginning when they find the heartbeats. Nothing is quite as reassuring as hearing the fast “thump-thump-thump-thump” of each of their little hearts. Especially when the sonographer says “normal heart rate for each of them”. That’s always good to hear.

Ok, on to the stats! If you’ll remember, last time (four weeks ago today) this is what they weighed:

Baby A: 2 pounds 15 ounces (73rd percentile)
Baby B: 2 pounds 11 ounces (46th percentile)

And now, four weeks later at 32 weeks 1 day:

Baby A: 4 pounds 11 ounces (66th percentile)
Baby B: 4 pounds 2 ounces (36th percentile)

Almost two pounds each in four weeks! Grow babies grow! Guys, do you realize I have 8 pounds 14 ounces of baby in me right now? Holy crap. That’s a lotta baby. That's more than most women are carrying when they're at 40 weeks. And I still have 6 weeks left if I go all the way to 38 weeks! Wow. Of course, these are all approximations so who knows.

This week the babies weigh as much as honeydew melons! It just blows my mind how much they’re growing. I’m making two little people! Crazy.

We also got some pictures of Baby A today. Baby B was facing away from the wand, so no pictures of her. :) We got one 3D one and one regular profile of Baby A.

I think she’s pretty darn cute if I do say so myself. :) I got all teary when I saw it, because she’s starting to look like a little person! I wish we could see Baby B too, but she’s really squished. I wish she’d turn and give herself a little more room. Even if she turned breech she’d have more space.

Oh… I just can’t believe I’m at 32 weeks! Getting so close it’s unbelievable. This weekend the list will definitely come out and we’ll make sure we start getting some more of those things crossed off. Because it’s gettin’ close to baby time, y’all!

Have a great weekend everyone!

~M

a "to do" update

Remember our “to do” list from about a month back? Well, some progress has been made, so I thought I’d do a little update. I’ve also added some new items at the end (in red), which I figured would happen.

1. Talk to insurance company and get any and all info we need for hospital stay, adding babies to insurance, etc.

2. Take our classes! This is coming up soon, and I’m excited. We start our Childbirth class series on May 1st! This goes for 3 Sundays, and then we have breastfeeding and caring for a newborn in mid May. We have one more Childbirth class on Sunday, but then we’re done.

3. Find a pediatrician. My OB has one that she’ll have us use in the hospital on the day, but still we need one for after that. We haven’t met her yet, but we have an appointment with her on June 1st. Lots of people in our neighborhood apparently use her, and love her. AND, she’s quite near our house, which is great as well. The receptionist said there were lots of twins in her practice; so that’s good! Of course if we don’t like her, this one will get un-crossed off; but I have a good feeling.

4. Do some spring cleaning. We need to deep clean the house a few more times (or perhaps hire someone to do it towards the end) before the babies arrive. I also want to do another “purge” of things we can give away to the Salvation Army. I got some Groupons for a house cleaning service (I bought two; each one is 3 ½ hours!) so this will help a lot. We’ll do one session in the next week or so, and then another around the 3rd week of June.

5. Buy our cloth diapers and some wet bags. Yes, we do plan on cloth diapering. At the beginning, we’re going to do a mix of disposable and cloth, and slowly move towards just doing cloth as they get bigger/we get better at it.

6. Wash all newborn clothes, crib sheet and mattress pads.

7. Stock up on food, toiletries, cat food & litter.

8. Test out breast pump and make sure I have all necessary parts. Wendy SO generously gave me hers, so I just need to take a look at it and make sure I understand how it works. It works, and we have everything we need. I’ll probably buy a few extra parts, since I’ve heard sterilizing takes a long time; and it still needs to be sterilized.

9. Purchase a few last minute items like a baby monitor. Mostly we have what we need though. Got the baby monitor at my surprise work baby shower! Only a few things left to get.

10. Line up a cat sitter.

11. Pack hospital bag.

12. Make a birth plan.

13. Buy some nursing tanks and bras.

14. Put the bassinet together.

15. Attach the changing pad to the dresser.

16. Make a few meals ahead of time and freeze.

So, we’re not done, by any means, but we’re making progress! We’re going to try and knock out a few things this weekend. Does anyone have any opinions on how early is “too early” to wash the baby clothes?

Oh, how I love lists. :) It's so satisfying to cross things off of them!

Does anyone see anything missing from our list? I think I've covered everything, but you never know...
 
~M

*photo found here

weekly wednesday update

How far along? 31 weeks 6 days!

Total weight gain/loss: 24 pounds to date. Not thrilled about that, but whatever. I have another appointment on Tuesday, so we’ll see what happens then.

Stretch marks? Yes.

Maternity clothes? Yep. But today I’m only wearing maternity pants! Ok, that sounded like I WASN’T wearing a top. I am; it’s just not maternity.

Sleep: Last night it was suck-a-roo. Woke up lots, but then also had trouble falling back to sleep after I did wake up. Verrrrrrry sleepy today.

Best moment this week: In childbirth class, we were practicing our breathing exercises, and we did an exercise where we held a handful of ice for 60 seconds and breathed through the pain to see if it helped (it did!). Anyway, Ian and I were breathing together and practicing the techniques and it was just a cool feeling to know that in just a few short (ok, probably 6 regular) weeks we’ll be breathing through my REAL labor pains!

Movement: Yep! They have definitely slowed down in their movement, but a quick Google search (I know, you shouldn’t do that, but oh well) tells me that babies don’t move as much later in the 3rd trimester, because they’re runnin’ out of space. So, since these girls are especially cramped, it makes sense. Though today they are moving plenty. :)

Food cravings: Not really. And today I couldn’t think of ANYthing I wanted for lunch. I ended up ordering lentil soup and a smoothie and an orange, but nothing honestly sounds good. Not even ice cream. I KNOW!

Genders: Still two girls!

Labor Signs: Just the Braxton hicks still, which are definitely happening more often. My uterus is going to be well practiced by the time labor comes!

Belly Button in or out? I think it’s as out as it’s going to get.

What I miss: Not having cankle/fankles. Oh, not familiar with the terminology? Well, basically, my calves are swollen, but so are my ankles and feet. And they’re all the same size; melding in to a cankle/fankle. It’s SO attractive.

Weekly Wisdom: When have a belly that sticks way out, it's WAY easier to drop food on it.

What I am looking forward to: Washing baby clothes. I’m going to tackle that in the next week or so, and it should be fun to wash and fold all the tiny clothes. Also- I have another growth ultrasound on Friday, so I get to see them! Last time they were so squished, you couldn’t really see much, but it’s still nice to see them in some way or another.
Weekly Wisdom: If you have swelling/water retention in your pregnancy, compression stockings DO help a little; though they certainly don’t fix the issue.

Milestones: I feel like I might be running out of “milestones” at this stage of the game. Or at least they won’t be coming so frequently.

And here's me, 31weeks, 6 days!

Sometimes I look at myself in the mirror from the front and think "hmm. My belly isn't THAT huge." And then I see my profile, and think "ahhhhh. Ok. Yes, yes it is."

And folks? I still have 6 weeks left...

egads.

~M

swollen

Well, couldn't think of a cutesy or clever title for this post. Maybe because my feet, ankles and calves are so swollen that it's clouding the clever part of my brain.

I have to say, the swollen lower extremities is so far one of the most unpleasant parts of being pregnant. And these aren't just mildly swollen, people; these are just, well, ridiculous. I'd post a picture, but I'm not that brave. They truly are kind of disgusting. I can barely tie my shoes (like, I can't tie a bow, only a very tiny small knot) and my work shoes barely fit. I just take them off while I'm at my desk, and put them on to hobble to the bathroom.

To be fair, it's not this bad every day. I went to my childbirth class and breastfeeding class yesterday, so I was sitting in a little classroom for 5 hours. Then afterwards we went out to dinner; so, more sitting. So today I am paying the price. Tonight I'll go home and put my feet up really high for the entire night to hopefully remedy it.

I also usually wear compression stockings (I know; can you handle the sexiness???) to help out, but they were already so swollen this morning, that I didn't think it would help. You're supposed to put them on first thing in the morning before your feet get swollen.

It's kind of funny how cocky you can get about not having certain pregnancy symptoms, and how quickly you can be proven wrong. Like, I remember thinking "no stretchmarks yet! I just have a feeling I won't get any!" and then BAM! A few days later, they arrived. And they arrived with a vengeance. And just a few weeks ago, my mom asked if I had any swollen feet issues, because she had struggled with that in her pregnancies. "Nope!" was my blissfully ignorant answer. And then, BAM, BAM! Swollen feet, ankles, calves. So, lesson learned. Just because something is going one way during your pregnancy at that point in time, doesn't mean it can't quickly take a turn in the opposite direction!

Thanks for listening to my whining! I'm off to hobble to the bathroom. (Do you think they make Crocs that are acceptable for work?) And then tonight; many hours of blissful feet putting up.

~M

blog issues and baby sizes.

So, it seems as though blogger is having some issues today, and ERASED my blog post from yesterday. Supposedly they are working on fixing it as we speak. If you didn't get to read it; it was a GEM.

*UPDATE* it's fixed! You can now read the brilliant-ness that is Thursday's post.

Anyway, for now, let's see how big those little ones are getting! According to Baby Center, they each weigh as much as four naval oranges:

So, that means I'm carrying around the weight of eight oranges! That's a lotta vitamin C.

And according to "What to Expect.." each baby is the size of a head of lettuce:

They said it was estimated that they were up to 19" long at this point (!) though who knows if that's accurate. So, I chose Romaine for this photo, since it's a long lettuce. :)

Anyway, I've got the weight of 8 oranges and the volume of two heads of Romaine sitting up in my uterus right now. Crazy!

This weekend we have our second childbirth class, and also our breastfeeding class on Sunday. I'm most looking forward to the breastfeeding class, though we're also going to be covering epidurals and medication in our childbirth class, so that should be interesting. I'll report back on Monday!

Hope you all have a lovely weekend!

~M

*photos found here and here

randomness for Thursday

I could not think of a topic to blog about today, so I'm going to give you a few of my random thoughts/goings on.

You're welcome.

A friend of mine just blogged that she was going out for a fun breakfast tomorrow. I wish I could go. I told her I'd order a cinnamon roll and now I REALLY REALLY want a cinnamon roll.

I have worked at TWO cinnamon roll restaurants in my career. Mrs. Powell's Cinnamon Rolls in Capital Mall in Olympia, ages 14-17, then Cinnabon in college for about a year. I've made many a cinnamon roll from scratch in my day, but never once after I stopped working at the aforementioned establishments.

My outfit today is just really lame. I mean, none of my pregnancy outfits have really been cute, but I just really didn't try today. I'm wearing a long sleeved shirt, and haphazardly grabbed a cardigan on the way out of the house, not knowing that the cardigan had shorter sleeves than the shirt. I tried to make it look like I did it on purpose... but I think it's not quite working.

I pretty much always have a hair band around my wrist like that. Because I'm classy and fancy.

I need to color my hair soon. It's pretty bad. I have lots of roots and many, MANY gray hairs that I have not seen because I've never really let my hair go so long without coloring it. I'm thinking of leaving it mostly the same sort of strawberry blonde color, but having them add in some blonde-er highlights for the spring summer.

We have a guest coming this weekend, so we're going to clean tonight and tomorrow. I can't do as many things right now, so Ian will take over things like scrubbing the tub and the toilet (bending over for a long time is pretty hard for me) but I will be doing things like cleaning the counters and stove top, and doing some sweeping and dusting. We're a team. I bought a groupon for two 3 1/2 hour cleaning sessions from a cleaning company, and I plan on using both before the babies arrive. I think one I'll use in a couple of weeks and then one during the third or fourth week of June. Then I can have a super sparkly house for baby time.

I still want a cinnamon roll. Dammit.

Speaking of baked goods, I recently made some pumpkin chocolate chip muffins for my friend Wendy for Mother's day. They were REALLY good. They were REALLY bad for you, but really good. I found the recipe here. Don't double the recipe though, unless you want 4 1/2 dozen of them. We ended up giving some to the neighbor and then Ian took a bunch to work.

(if you're a nerd and you're counting the muffins right now and saying "Hey! That's not four and half dozen! Well, this photo was taken after we'd already eaten 3, so calm down.)

Last weekend we were at Target, and we were in the toy aisle, and I saw a bunch of puzzles and suddenly I wanted one. We got one and did some puzzling all weekend. It's still not finished (1000 pieces) and it's on our dining room table. It's pretty fun. :) This is the one we got, only it wasn't this expensive.

Ok, I think that's enough of my crazy ramblings for one day! Tomorrow I'll try to come up with something more interesting to blog about.

Enjoy your Thursdays, everyone!

~M

weekly wednesday update

How far along? 30 weeks 6 days!

Total weight gain/loss: Well, it's not great. Last time I went to the doctor (two weeks ago) I had only gained 17 pounds thus far. Well, yesterday I went to the doctor and I've gained SEVEN pounds in the last two weeks. So now I'm up to 24 pounds. GAH. Now, glancing down and my giganticly swollen ankles and fingers, I'm guessing that a lot of that weight is water. Because two weeks ago, I wasn't retaining any, and suddenly I'm puffier than a marshmallow. So, I know probably at least 4 pounds of it is water. Also, my doctor said each baby has "a lot" of amniotic fluid around it. So, I'm just full of fluid apparently. It's not the most comfortable feeling in the world, I won't lie. My wedding rings are officially off until July most likely; which makes me sad. Anyway, weight wise, I'm just going to try for the next two weeks to keep chugging a ton of water, not eating much salt, and cutting out any extra treats to see if I can help curb this a bit. 7 pounds in two weeks is not ok when I have 7 weeks to go.

Stretch marks? Yes.

Maternity clothes? Yep. I haven't gotten any new tops as I mentioned I would last week, but I do need to. So, this will be my goal this week.

Sleep: Recently I seem to be having trouble falling asleep. I hope this trend doesn't stick around, because I'm tired! I mean, duh, everyone knows that's just part of the pregnancy thing, but I'm hoping not to have insomnia for the rest of the pregnancy. I think I might need to just go to bed earlier before I get my second wind.

Best moment this week: Getting wished "Happy Mother's Day!" by strangers on the street. :) I also got a nice card and gift from my mom and flowers from my dad. I don't actually think this Mother's Day counted since my babies are not out yet, but it was a nice feeling and made me excited for next year for my REAL first Mother's Day. :)

Movement: Yep! And at my doctor appointment yesterday, I found out why I feel most of my movement on my upper right. Baby B's hands are there, and Baby A's feet are there! So, they're probably playing with each other's hands and feet and either kicking or punching away. So, that gave me some relief, as I thought that was only Baby B moving when I felt kicks on my right side.

Food cravings: Not really. It's kind of funny how the whole "craving" thing hasn't been a huge part of my pregnancy. I'd say the two things I've craved the most are red meat, and ice cream. I know, healthy, right? Not that I've HAD these things every time I wanted them, but you know. I'd say I've had more aversions than cravings. Who knows though; 7 weeks to go, maybe I'll get more cravings as the last few weeks wind down.

Genders: Still two girls!

Labor Signs: Have definitely had braxton hicks contractions, but that's it so far. Also, according to my doctor, my cervix is still completely locked down and not doing a darn thing. Which is good! I really do think I could make it all the way to my 38 week mark (knock on wood).

Belly Button in or out? Halfway out still. I think I have a weird belly button and I never knew it until now. Who knows if it's ever going to come all the way out.

What I miss: Not retaining water. Also, my ankle bones.

What I am looking forward to: These days, I'm just looking forward to it all! Even labor. I know, crazy, but I am just so excited! I'm still trying my darndest to enjoy this pregnancy even though it's getting more uncomfortable. I think I just need to start resting more, make sure I chug lots of water, and put my feet up when I can.

Weekly Wisdom: When you're prengnant, if you're somewhere with a bathroom, you should always, always use it. Even if you don't think you have to go, because you WILL have to go in like 5 minutes.

Milestones: Not really any this week. It's a lot of pressure to come up with a "milestone" every week!

And here's me, 30weeks, 6 days!

Also, I REALLY want to thank you for voting for me on Top Baby Blogs! I've reached the second page which is awesome!! You guys rock! :) I'm going to be making some formatting changes to the blog, and just generally "prettying" it up a little in the upcoming couple of weeks, so keep your eyes out for that! I'd love to stay on this page and slowly make my way up, so click away if you feel so inclined. Also, if you're a secret follower, you should make it publicly known by clicking "follow" off in the left margin. That way, you'll be updated on your Google dashboard whenever there's a new post!

Have a wonderful day, friends! :)

~M

that’s about the size of it

So, there’s no denying it; when you get pregnant- you are inevitably going to get bigger. You can’t avoid it. And when you’re pregnant with twins, you’re going to get even bigger than that. And when you started out as not a small person to begin with; well, say goodbye to your toes. You won’t be seeing them for a while.

Having a gigantic belly is something I’m quite aware of. There isn’t really any part of the day where I’m surprised to look down and see the basketball sized bump under my shirt. And for the most part, people have been very nice about the fact that the bump just keeps getting bigger and bigger. In fact, I read other blogs or hear other people’s stories about how people are always commenting on how big they are, and up until a few weeks ago, I thought I was one of the lucky ones that was going to escape people’s comments.

I was wrong.

Now, I haven’t had too many yet; but they’re starting to escalate. And since I look like a full term pregnant lady (women with twins generally measure 8 weeks ahead of those having one), I assume once I PASS looking full term, and just ginormous, the comments will continue to happen.

Some people (these are people I know- not strangers) just keep saying “Wow, you just keep getting bigger and bigger” or “wow, you’re just huge!”, every time I see them. Ok, yes. This might be true. But so far this is only women friends saying this to me. Now, ladies. Even though I’m pregnant, (and as I mentioned before, it’s a given that I’ll get bigger), when have you EVER wanted someone to say “wow! You’re big!” to you? Maybe you don’t care if you were already petite to begin with, but if you’re ever someone who has struggled with body image, having someone say “Holy crap! You’re huge!” doesn’t really feel good. Yes, I know it’s hard not to comment. But couldn’t you say something like, “Those babies sure are growing!” or “what a lovely belly!” or SOMEthing?

Now, as far as the comments from strangers, I’ve only had two official ones. I HAVE, however, had lots of people blatantly stare; and not look away for a long time. The first comment was a gentleman visiting our office. I was seating him in a conference room, and he asked when I was due. I gave my standard response, “Around the end of June, with twins.” I have to add the “with twins” part, so that people realize why I already look like I’m going to pop. His response? “Oh, with twins. Well, that makes sense. I was going to say, ‘End of June? But you’re already so big!’ but now that I know it’s twins, that makes sense.” Um, was it really necessary to tell me what rude thing you were GOING to say?

And finally, I had a very “New York” rude comment this morning on my way out of Grand Central Station. This guy with a very thick New York accent saw me walking down the street and as he passed me he LOUDLY said “Whoa! That HAS to be twins! Whoa!” and just kept walking by, like he wasn’t saying it to me, just generally commenting. Nice.

Sigh. I know that some people just can’t help it. And most of the time, I honestly don’t care. But I just wish that sometimes people would think about what they’re saying, BEFORE they say it. I’m not saying you have to ignore the fact that it looks like I’m smuggling a watermelon, but you know, try to be nice about it.

~M

who will you be?

Many times a day, I sit with my hands on my stomach, feeling the two little babies flutter around inside, and wonder; what will they be like? Will they be shy like their mom was, or super creative like their dad? Will they be tall, short, thin, chubby, outgoing, introverted, freckled, blue eyed, red headed, smart, athletic, musical… the list goes on; so many possibilities! And with two of them in there; they could be very similar, or complete opposites! It’s so exciting to think about; yet a little overwhelming at the same time.

I feel like I’m starting to reach a slightly overwhelmed stage in all of this. It feels very similar to the “senioritis” you get before you graduate high school or college. Yes, of course it’s quite different, but I think it’s because I know their arrival is SO close in the grand scheme of things, yet it sometimes still feels so far away! I know it will go quickly though, and they’ll be here before I know it. I still have things to do to prepare for their arrival, but we’re pretty close to ready. And though I do feel impatient to meet them, I also sometimes think “wait! I’m not ready! I’m not ready to have two babies that I’m in charge of. Not ready, I say!”. But I know that I am. I can keep reading books, and going to classes, and checking things off of lists, but I know that I’m ready enough, because I’m more than ready to love them. More than ready to talk to them, smile at them, keep them warm, fed, clothed, changed, safe and snuggled.

It will probably be a while before we see any real distinguishing personalities from each of them, so my curiosity about “who will you be” will probably have to wait a bit. But that’s ok. We have a whole lifetime to figure that out, and until then, we just can’t wait to meet them.

~M

*photo found here

sideways

When it comes to giving birth, so far (and don’t quote me on this later), I feel fairly calm about it all. Because really, I feel that there’s only so much I can do; and the rest is just left up to chance/fate/whatever-you-want-to-call-it.

At this point, the obedient Baby A is head down, and she has been for many, many weeks. We joke that she’s the “rule follower” of the two, because she got where she was supposed to go right away, and hasn’t budged. Though she DOES have the larger head of the two. Ow.

Baby B however, is lounging transverse style; which means she is laying horizontally in my uterus- her head on my left side. No one seems overly concerned, saying she could turn at any time, or maybe she’ll turn right after Baby A makes her debut and there’s more room, or, they can turn her manually. OW again. But then I read things about how sometimes they won’t turn, and have to come out via c-section. Which, yes, I’m in the camp of “however the babies need to come out to be healthy is fine with me”, but I’d prefer not to have to give birth vaginally AND have surgery. Though how much of a bad ass would I be if THAT happened? ;)

This all may sound like I’m totally worried; but I’m really not. I have, however, been researching natural ways to make babies turn from transverse to head down, and I think I might try some. A couple of them are yoga poses, or stretches, and then there’s things like placing a frozen bag of peas on your stomach right above the baby’s head, forcing them to turn away from it. So, I might try one of these things to help her find her way.

For now though, she seems to be our non rule-follower, lounging whichever way she pleases. And really, I know what happens will be what is meant to happen, and it’s my plan to just go with the flow with it all as much as possible, and do what feels right. You know, like Baby B. Our sideways chillin’ rebel.

~M

weekly wednesday update

How far along? 29 weeks 6 days! 30 weeks tomorrow!

Total weight gain/loss: To date, 17 pounds. I have a doctor appt. next Tuesday, so I'll see then how much I'm up since the last visit.

Stretch marks? Yes. And the itching is pretty much gone! Let's hope it stays away! I'm sure more stretch marks are in my future. But? Oh well. Whaddyagonnado.

Maternity clothes? Yep. I think this week I will get a couple of spring/summer dresses and maybe a top or two, and then I think I'll be done buying maternity clothes. Though, I may just get spring tops for work, and save the dresses for weekends. I can't seem to stop my ankles form swelling, and since it's no longer tights season really, wearing dresses without any sort of compression tights makes my ankles look elephant-like quite quickly. So, it may just be slacks and tops for work for the next two months.

Sleep: Oh, you know. Not great, but whatever. I usually wake up 6-7 times night to pee, flip over on my other side, and get re situated.

Best moment this week: Watching Ian diaper and burp and swaddle our practice baby in our caring for a newborn class. It was pretty cute, and just made me all the more excited for him to be a dad.

Movement: Yep! I've started to get paranoid about how much they move, or don't move actually. I've read conflicting things; some sources say that the movement will begin to slow down now, because they're running out of room, and some say the opposite. Also, you're supposed to count their movements 1-2 times a day while laying down. This isn't difficult in and of itself, but I find it hard because I can't tell which ONE is kicking me. So, I'm just hoping that if I feel kicks frequently enough, it's ok. I'll ask my doctor next week.

Food cravings: Not really.

Genders: Still two girls!

Labor Signs: Have definitely had braxton hicks contractions, but that's it so far.

Belly Button in or out? Halfway out still. It's kind of wonky looking. :)

What I miss: Second trimester energy. I read that you'd be tired again in your third trimester, but I thought maybe it wouldn't be that much different. But yep! They were right; the sleepiness is back.

What I am looking forward to: Washing and folding all the cute newborn clothes. I think I'll do that in the next few weeks.

Weekly Wisdom: I'm trying really hard to just be patient and realize that this last bit is such a short period of time. So, I'm giving myself some wisdom, that hopefully I'll listen to. "Self? I know you are getting more uncomfortable every day, and that it's getting harder to do things and move around, and you feel like a gigantic whale, but you only have a little more than two months left. It will fly by, and it is all worth it. So, suck it up, do what you can to relax when you can, and think about those two lovely girls on their way."

Milestones: Well, it's not a REAL milestone, but honestly, this week feels like I'm actually in the 3rd trimester. It was a big shift. More tired, more sluggish, more hormonal feeling, and just more pregnant feeling in general.

And here's me, 29 weeks, 6 days! I don't love this dress because I don't think it's very flattering, and it will probably be the last time I wear it to work (see mention of elephant ankles above). Also, I spent way too long trying to get a good photo today, and well, finally just gave up:

Also, (hey, are you getting tired of this yet?) we're up to #57 on Top Baby Blogs! If I make it to 50, I'll be on the second page, which would be really cool. So, if you feel so inclined, click the below button. You can vote once a day! Thanks everyone, and have a lovely Wednesday!

~M

oh, I see. that’s what they mean by uncomfortable.

Well, it seems as though in the last week, I am starting in on the “I’m getting uncomfortable” phase. Before, I had moments of being uncomfortable, but I’m starting to see a glimmer of it happening much, much more frequently. I have to pee all the time, which is nothing new, but it seems to be extra frequent now. Sitting OR standing for any length of time is uncomfortable. I’m starting to get puffy ankles if I sit for too long (probably won’t be as bad today though, since I’m wearing my compression maternity tights; can you say SEXXXY? I mean, they look like regular tights, but still.) It seems as though my back and pelvic bones just sort of ache frequently too.

Rolling over in bed is funny when you have a big pregnant belly. Frequently I have to switch from one side to the other. In doing so, I just try to roll over, but it’s not that easy when you have the weight of two babies and a giant uterus all out in front of you. I’m sure it’s comical to watch. :)

Also, the first trimester fatigue seems to be back. I’m quite sleepy all the time.

It’s so crazy, most of this really did all sort of start happening within the last week or so. I’m kind of hoping that it just stays at this sort of “mild-to-medium” uncomfortable level for the next few weeks, as I still have about 8-9 weeks left.

However, one awesome thing is that my itching has pretty much disappeared! I’m so happy that the miserable-ness of that is over. I really hope it doesn’t come back, but from what I understand, it’s possible that it can; especially since I still have two more months of skin stretching ahead. I’ll just keep using that awesome Pine Tar soap that Ian found me, and hope I can keep it at bay.

I wish I had a swimming pool! Seems like feeling weightless and all floaty would feel pretty awesome right now. :)

~M

*psst! We're almost in the top 50! :)

the learning report and cute dresses

Happy Monday everyone!

Well, we had a lovely weekend! On Saturday we had a very relaxing day of sleeping in a little, breakfast, catching up on some TV, chatting with friends on the phone, and just general hanging out.

Sunday was the big class day! From 10:30-1:00 we had our Childbirth class, and then from 2:00-4:00 we had our Caring for a Newborn class. Both classes were taught by this tiny, wacky, Orthodox Jewish lady, who was quite the character. The Childbirth class was not as informative as I thought it might be, but I did learn a few things. She mostly covered things like signs to look for to tell how you know you’re in labor, the stages of labor, some breathing exercises/coping mechanisms, some different ways the whole experience could go, etc. It’s a hard thing to teach I’d think, since everyone has a completely different experience. Like me; of course it’s still possible that I could go into labor on my own, but it’s also quite possible that I’ll just be induced, and won’t have to be on the lookout for any signs. Next class (there are 3) I think we’re going to talk about medications and epidurals, and a few more “nuts and bolts” kinds of things, so that will be helpful.

For the Caring for a Newborn class, we learned things like diapering, burping, bathing, swaddling, umbilical cord care; along with the first couple of days of the babies’ lives, and how things will be in the hospital. I knew a lot of the stuff, but some of it was new to me, so that was good. We got our own practice baby to diaper and swaddle and burp. It was pretty cute watching Ian with the practice baby. He’s going to be such a good dad. :)

We had some funny characters in our classes as well. It was kind of amazing how clueless some of the couples were; and it confirmed how well informed the both of us were. Ian has read a couple of books, and wants to read a couple more; which is way more than any of the other dads in the class. My husband rocks.

All in all, it was a fun time. Got to spend some quality time with my favorite person, and we feel a tiny bit more prepared than we did a few days ago. Also, just taking these classes makes us feel like things are getting closer; which is so exciting!

And because I like to always try and include pictures in my posts, here are two new gems I picked up from Opal Vintage last week.

Both of these can't be used until they're around 12 months or so, but how CUTE are they?? Mandy has all sorts of adorable things in her shop; and not just baby stuff! Check out her adorable shop, Opal.

Have a great day, everyone!

~M