Saturday, November 30, 2013

OB Visit

First, let me say Woo-Hoo!  Today these babies and I have reached 30 weeks. It seems like it's gone crazy fast, and yet, we still could have 2 more months before they make their arrival.  Then again, maybe not...

Now, about the OB appointment I had on Thursday.  As I was walking into the clinic, an old man was dropping off his wife.  The timing was perfect for us to walk in together.  I said hello and she responded by saying how lucky I was to be so blessed to be having a baby.  She told me she was never able to have kids, but her sister was kind enough to share hers.

She had to have been in her 70's, maybe in her 80's.  She could have been me in another 30 years or so.  I have been pretty fortunate to have a sister that has shared her kids with me.  I told the lady that it's taken us over 14 years and a lot of extra help to get pregnant, so I understood.

She stopped at the bench just inside to wait for her husband and I continued down the hall, but I couldn't stop thinking about her.  The difference between her and I is that I live in a time where we could seek fertility treatments.  She did not.  While my sister has shared her kids with me, she has also shared a part of herself that had allowed me to have a family of my own.  These past few days, I have often wondered if what I said might have been hurtful to her.  How could I understand where she was coming from, when I am obviously pregnant and about to have my own children?  I do understand the pain of not being able to have any kids, but I don't understand what it's like to grow old and still be in that situation.  That's something I have feared but haven't experienced, and Lord willing, I won't.

As I sat down in the waiting room, another lady sat a few chairs away from me and struck up a conversation. Of course she wanted to talk about my pregnancy.  Sigh.  She said it looked like I would be having my baby pretty soon.  I told her my due date, which produced a puzzled look on her face.  I explained that there is two babies.  Then she wanted to know if I knew what they were.  And of course, this led to her excitement about how it's perfect because I'm getting one of each, a boy AND a girl.  Aren't I just so happy?

I cannot even begin to tell you how many times a day I have this conversation with people.  Yes, I am very happy.  But I would have been just as happy with two boys or two girls.  People don't seem to get that.  I often hear how I can be done with my family if I wanted, because I'll have one of each.  That makes absolutely NO sense to me.  I know plenty of people that DON'T have twins, but still stop at two boys or two girls, even though they came from separate pregnancies.  Also, it's exhausting to even think about explaining to people that we don't have a choice in the matter anyway.  We won't be extending our family beyond these babies.  We have no embryos left and we are at the end of our financial limits.  Besides that, my sister was an egg donor for us and I am not about to ask her to go through that again.  Hubby and I don't want to go through it again either.

I absolutely am so happy that we are blessed with two babies out of this deal, but we would have been happy with one.  We also would have been happy with two girls or two boys.  Just because we are getting one of each, does not make it any sweeter.  How could we not feel immensely blessed, regardless of their sex, when it took us SOooo long to get here?

Okay, on to the appointment.  Everything is going fantastic!  I cannot believe how fortunate I am to not have had any major complications so far.  The issues I have had are so minor in comparison to what some people go through.

My blood pressure was 117/78, actually down a little bit from my previous appointment.  I was afraid it would be going up since I had started swelling, but the swelling hasn't even been too bad yet.  My urine sample came back normal.  My rash has mostly gone away, except for my right boob which itches constantly.  The worst thing I have going on right now is carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands.  My middle fingers are in a constant state of numbness and my other fingers join in the fun occasionally as well.  My hands do hurt pretty much all the time, but I can live with that.  The trade off is far too great to get upset about it.  I can live with sore hands if it means I get two babies at the end of all this.

Dr. P told me I am doing brilliantly!  She cannot believe how well I have been handling this twin pregnancy. I love her!  She is still continuing to monitor my liver, as my liver enzymes are still elevated, but remaining stable.  Not a big deal at this point.

Starting this next week, I will be going in twice/week for Non-Stress tests (NST).  My first one is on Monday.  I'm kind of nervous and excited for it all at the same time.

It's funny how 2 months can sometimes seem like such a long time, but in pregnancy the weeks just go by so quickly!  I can't believe I am at the point that I need two appointments/week already.

My goal is to work through the next pay period at work, which will be December 19th.  I asked Dr. P if that is a reasonable goal, and she said she thinks for me, it is, because things are going so well.  That will put me just shy of 33 weeks.  That is only 19 days away!!!!  Say what?  How is that possible?

36 comments:

  1. Love, love, love reading about good dr visits!

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    1. I love, love, love writing about good dr. visits :) Thanks Stacie!

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  2. I'm so glad to hear that everything is going so well! And yay for 30 weeks!
    I can somewhat relate to the "one of each" responses - when we found out we were having two girls, there were some comments from people (who knew our history) that "one of each would have been nice". Dear people. We would have been so blessed to bring any babies home. It stung then - I felt my girls were not accepted for who they were, I was a protective mom already. It might sting even more now.
    I so much hope you'll get to bring these two babies home, in more or less two months' time.

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    1. Dear people is right! I find it a little funny that so many people can have such strong opinions on our behalf.

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  3. yay for such a great report!! I'm saying prayer that everything continues so smooth sailing for you and the precious twins :)

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  4. When I was pregnant everyone kept telling me "I hope it's a girl since you already have a boy!" or would ask "Are you going to have another if it's a boy?". Um no. I am done at two kids. The genetic lottery just so happened to give me one of each but I would have been positively thrilled with another boy. My son is AWESOME! I am grateful for the opportunity to be a parent. Period.

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    1. It seems we both managed to win the lottery with one of each :) I'm glad that we are able to satisfy everyone else's expectations. What a great way to put it: I am grateful for the opportunity to be a parent. Period. Exactly!

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  5. What a great visit! I am so excited for you!!!

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  6. Amber congrats in this huge milestone. You have been through do much to make it to point. I truly admire you and can't wait to see those sweet babies :)

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    1. Aww, thank you so much. I can't wait to see them either! As long as it's a few weeks down the road...

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  7. So glad things are going well!! That is all great news! And it is amazing how much help we have available to us now that people our grandparents age could have never imagined!

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    1. No kidding. I am so glad that we have the opportunity to pursue treatments now.

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  8. Don't you just love the twin comments?! They don't stop. Awesome news on a great report! Happy 30 weeks! Not long now.

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    1. Yeah, I'm learning that twins really are a great phenomenon. I admit, I've always had a fascination with twins myself, but I hope that I never made anyone feel uncomfortable about it!

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  9. The twin conversations really are universal. Most people say to me "is it a boy and a girl?" instead of asking what sex they are. I think people really like the idea of the perfect instant family. I admit I was really hoping for one of each, but now that I have two girls I can't imagine anything else. Most people assume I am done having kids because I have twins when really I am done because I am not likely to get pregnant again.
    Glad things are going so smoothly and hope it stays that way for many, many more weeks.

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    1. I've always wanted four kids. However, at this point, I'm not sure we would have any more kids even if we could, simply because we are getting such a late start at our family. I'm just happy to have the chance to be a parent at all! So excited for us both, that we've been blessed with this opportunity.

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  10. Thanks for sharing that story about you and the older lady.

    I am so so so happy things are going so well for you and the babies. : )

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    1. I have thought about that lady several times since that day, so thought I would share it :)

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  11. Holy crap lady, before you know it those babies will be here! I know what you mean about that elderly lady...I often think about how horrible all of this must have been for women who lived back in an age when fertility treatments weren't an option. Or in an age when your marriage depended on your ability to produce children. Can you imagine your husband leaving you because you couldn't give him an heir? And you wouldn't know why? Kind of off topic but I find it interesting and sad.

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    1. I know, right? I feel very fortunate that technology and medicine have come so far so that we have at least a better CHANCE at having a family.

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  12. Amber,
    Thank you for being so honest in your post because it really makes us wonder what the elderly had to go through. I'm so happy for you and how far you have made it! I pray these babies stay snuggled for a long time and you continue to feel well. God's blessings to you!

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  13. Oh, how blooming exciting is this!!!!!!!!!!!! You and those babies are doing so well and prayers galore that everything continues for as long as possible!!!!!! January 25th, would be perfect!!! I am sure that you said the perfect thing to the elderly lady, for one, who you are and for two, I would imagine that she has come to peace as well as one can over her situation. But the fact that she made the comment to a stranger, one knows, she still thinks about the if only. Lots of love and hugs! Auntie

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    1. I would hope that she has come to some level of peace over her situation or that would be very sad. But you are right, the fact that she mentioned it to a stranger means that she still thinks about it.

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  14. oh my gosh I can't believe you are already at the point where you can see the end in sight! How exciting to be talking about when you will finish work! I am so so so glad everything is going so well for you:)
    I can understand where you are coming from with the twin comments, but I am sure I've said those things myself. (hopefully I didn't offend people) People don't mean anything serious by those comments usually, I think it's just the automatic thing that pops to your mind when you hear someone is having one of each. I'm sure you are sick of it by now though! haha

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    1. I have no doubt that people have the best intentions when they make comments. It's just that having the same conversations several times a day does get a little old, especially when you don't exactly agree with their way of thinking but I'm too nice to say otherwise :)

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  15. 30 weeks!!! Hooray!! I know how excited you are for the babies to be here, safe and healthy, but are you finding yourself getting sad at the thought of not being pregnant anymore? I hope I'm not alone, haha! I'm so glad your rash is clearing up and things are looking perfect. You are so rocking this pregnancy!

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    1. Weellllll, I've enjoyed being pregnant, but I'm also actually looking forward to when I can function normally again, being able to tie my shoes, get dressed without it being a major workout, my hands not hurting.... It's definitely been an experience, and one I am so incredibly thankful for. I've always regretted the idea that I would never get to experience pregnancy, but then I got the experience and I wouldn't trade it for the world. However, I'm so looking forward to the day I get to hold these babies in my arms instead of in my belly :)

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  16. 30 weeks with two perfect, healthy babies!! SO exciting... I am so excited to see them in a couple of months!! They are almost here!

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    1. I can't wait!! My husband tells me everyday how he just wants them to be here NOW! Although not literally. He wants them to be here NOW, as long as I am a few weeks further down the road. haha!

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  17. Not much longer now! I don't understand people's fascination with having one if each. People ask me when we're going to start trying for a girl. Umm, if I'm able to get pregnant again I will be THRILLED just as much if it was another boy then if it was a girl. I think it might be kind of fun to have two boys.

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    1. Exactly! I think the dynamics between two boys or two girls would be a lot of fun as well. I'm happy with one of each, but I would have enjoyed it either way.

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  18. My mom struggled for about 15 years to have children, and 30 years ago there was very little she could do. I do feel lucky that now we have specialists and fancy science and Google and a blogging community--when she had none of those things. Happy 30 weeks!!

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    1. That is a long time to struggle with infertility. I am so glad that your mom was able to eventually have children. We are definitely lucky to have all the resources available to us now for sure.

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