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?
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Things Are Getting Harder
I feel like I reached a turning point this last week. I had an appointment every single day after work, for one thing or another.
Monday: I got my haircut and covered my gray. I really would have liked to grow it out a bit more, but it was just getting to be more than I could handle. It took too much work to comb it all out (I don't use a brush, or I would have an afro), and I couldn't leave it down to sleep on because it was too much work not to lay on it. I can barely roll over as it is without having to lift myself up to get off my hair! So, I got 4-5 inches cut off. It's still past my shoulders and can be pulled into a pony tail, but I feel so much better.
Tuesday: Our entire software system at work is getting replaced so we had to attend a 2 hour software training to learn the new program. It effects all our scheduling and how we get paid, so it was kind of important.
Wednesday: My work baby shower. I was overwhelmed with the love and support that was shown to me by the members here at the club. There were about 60 members in attendance, and many more that contributed gifts or money toward a gift certificate. I've worked here for over 8 years, and I've made a lot of friends. It was amazing. I received $510 in gift certificates! Not to mention the actual gifts received. As I said, it was very overwhelming, but much appreciated.
Thursday: I had an OB appointment and met with a different doctor at the clinic. I was not impressed. He wasn't very personable at all, so now I can only hope he is not the one on call when I deliver these babies. I did learn that I am measuring at 38 weeks pregnant already! Yikes! That means, if I actually do make it to 38 weeks, I will measure as if I am 11 months pregnant. Oy.
Friday: I don't work on Fridays, but I did have a lot of stuff that needed to be done. It was really, really nice to be able to do stuff at my leisure though, and take breaks as needed. Once I did my grocery shopping in the afternoon though, I was done in! That really zapped my energy. That night, my in-laws came over to help move the furniture into the nursery and help get it put together. I absolutely LOVE the nursery! The walls are done being painted, the cribs, dresser, and changing table are put into place, and the window topper is hung. It looks so great! I love it. We did rearrange the furniture a few different times to try to find the best fit. Two cribs make the room seem very small! I will share pictures after we get a little more done.
Saturday: We celebrated Thanksgiving with Hubby's family.
Sunday: We went to see the new Hunger Games movie, Catching Fire. Holy smokes, the babies were having a gymnastics meet in my belly during the movie! It had to be the effects of my own adrenaline from watching the movie. There were times that I jumped at different scenes, and got teary eyed at others. They were moving all over the place! Then we had Hubby's parents over for dinner afterwards.
So, things are getting harder. I don't know how much longer I can keep up this pace with working. I only work part time, but with something going on EVERY afternoon, I might as well be working full time. This week is no different, other than I get an extra day off for Thanksgiving! Woo-Hoo!
Last night, Hubby and I took our Infant CPR class at the hospital. I'm so glad that we did. I actually used to teach first aid and cpr in college, but that was a long time ago. I feel better having it refreshed. It makes me feel like I will be able to remain much more calm should a situation arise with our little ones.
Today, I am getting a massage! Yay!!! But.... it still means I won't get home until late afternoon.
Tomorrow I have another OB appointment.
How it's getting harder:
I'm hoping that I can make it through the next pay period, which means I would be working until Dec. 19th. We REALLY REALLY SUPER DUPER need for me to bring in one more paycheck. I will be just shy of 33 weeks at that point.
I can't believe we are actually going to have babies pretty soon. It is so surreal. It's also scary. I'm nervous for my doctor's appointment tomorrow. I'm going to ask her what she thinks is a realistic time line for me to continue working. I'm afraid that time is going to be sooner rather than later, now that my feet have started to swell. We will see....
Monday: I got my haircut and covered my gray. I really would have liked to grow it out a bit more, but it was just getting to be more than I could handle. It took too much work to comb it all out (I don't use a brush, or I would have an afro), and I couldn't leave it down to sleep on because it was too much work not to lay on it. I can barely roll over as it is without having to lift myself up to get off my hair! So, I got 4-5 inches cut off. It's still past my shoulders and can be pulled into a pony tail, but I feel so much better.
Tuesday: Our entire software system at work is getting replaced so we had to attend a 2 hour software training to learn the new program. It effects all our scheduling and how we get paid, so it was kind of important.
Wednesday: My work baby shower. I was overwhelmed with the love and support that was shown to me by the members here at the club. There were about 60 members in attendance, and many more that contributed gifts or money toward a gift certificate. I've worked here for over 8 years, and I've made a lot of friends. It was amazing. I received $510 in gift certificates! Not to mention the actual gifts received. As I said, it was very overwhelming, but much appreciated.
Thursday: I had an OB appointment and met with a different doctor at the clinic. I was not impressed. He wasn't very personable at all, so now I can only hope he is not the one on call when I deliver these babies. I did learn that I am measuring at 38 weeks pregnant already! Yikes! That means, if I actually do make it to 38 weeks, I will measure as if I am 11 months pregnant. Oy.
Friday: I don't work on Fridays, but I did have a lot of stuff that needed to be done. It was really, really nice to be able to do stuff at my leisure though, and take breaks as needed. Once I did my grocery shopping in the afternoon though, I was done in! That really zapped my energy. That night, my in-laws came over to help move the furniture into the nursery and help get it put together. I absolutely LOVE the nursery! The walls are done being painted, the cribs, dresser, and changing table are put into place, and the window topper is hung. It looks so great! I love it. We did rearrange the furniture a few different times to try to find the best fit. Two cribs make the room seem very small! I will share pictures after we get a little more done.
Saturday: We celebrated Thanksgiving with Hubby's family.
Sunday: We went to see the new Hunger Games movie, Catching Fire. Holy smokes, the babies were having a gymnastics meet in my belly during the movie! It had to be the effects of my own adrenaline from watching the movie. There were times that I jumped at different scenes, and got teary eyed at others. They were moving all over the place! Then we had Hubby's parents over for dinner afterwards.
So, things are getting harder. I don't know how much longer I can keep up this pace with working. I only work part time, but with something going on EVERY afternoon, I might as well be working full time. This week is no different, other than I get an extra day off for Thanksgiving! Woo-Hoo!
Last night, Hubby and I took our Infant CPR class at the hospital. I'm so glad that we did. I actually used to teach first aid and cpr in college, but that was a long time ago. I feel better having it refreshed. It makes me feel like I will be able to remain much more calm should a situation arise with our little ones.
Today, I am getting a massage! Yay!!! But.... it still means I won't get home until late afternoon.
Tomorrow I have another OB appointment.
How it's getting harder:
- My feet started to really swell over the weekend. They aren't TOO bad yet, but they are getting there. I can't find a pair of socks that don't cut off my circulation, no matter how loose fitting they are. I'm getting nice indents on my legs from where my socks sit.
- Swelling aside, my feet just plain hurt if I stand on them for very long.
- I have a serious case of pregnancy induced carpal tunnel. The middle fingers on both of my hands are in a constant state of numbness, with the forefinger and thumb joining in the fun every time I lay down.
- It is a major workout to bend over and pick anything up off the floor. Or get dressed. Or do just about anything that requires movement.
- I can't move in bed hardly at all to change positions. It's not just uncomfortable, it actually hurts.
- I am exhausted.
I'm hoping that I can make it through the next pay period, which means I would be working until Dec. 19th. We REALLY REALLY SUPER DUPER need for me to bring in one more paycheck. I will be just shy of 33 weeks at that point.
I can't believe we are actually going to have babies pretty soon. It is so surreal. It's also scary. I'm nervous for my doctor's appointment tomorrow. I'm going to ask her what she thinks is a realistic time line for me to continue working. I'm afraid that time is going to be sooner rather than later, now that my feet have started to swell. We will see....
Saturday, November 23, 2013
The Stork Award
The Stork Award is a new blogging award, created by my wonderful bloggie friend Teresa at Where the *Bleep* is Our Stork?. Not only is Teresa a bloggie friend, but she is also a fellow Oregonian that I had the opportunity to meet in person this past summer, which made us officially real life friends as well!
About the Stork Award:
Teresa thought of the hummingbird when developing this new award. The hummingbird generally symbolizes playfulness as well as adaptability. Additional symbolic meanings are: lightness of being, enjoyment of life, playfulness and joy, swiftness, and resiliency.
Teresa has found that many of the blogs she reads, remind her of the hummingbird. The strength and resilience that so many of you have is fascinating and inspiring.
I agree with her. I have found so much inspiration from the stories you share. We learn from each other how we might better handle loss, grief, struggle.... and we also learn how to be humble and conscious of others when we experience success.
Each of our stories are important, and each of us have something in our individual stories that can help someone along the way.
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| Teresa and me |
Teresa thought of the hummingbird when developing this new award. The hummingbird generally symbolizes playfulness as well as adaptability. Additional symbolic meanings are: lightness of being, enjoyment of life, playfulness and joy, swiftness, and resiliency.
Teresa has found that many of the blogs she reads, remind her of the hummingbird. The strength and resilience that so many of you have is fascinating and inspiring.
I agree with her. I have found so much inspiration from the stories you share. We learn from each other how we might better handle loss, grief, struggle.... and we also learn how to be humble and conscious of others when we experience success.
Each of our stories are important, and each of us have something in our individual stories that can help someone along the way.
How it works:
1. Include the Stork Award icon in your post
2. Link to the person(s) who nominated you
3. Answer the 10 questions about yourself
4. Nominate as many bloggers as you want to receive the award
1. Include the Stork Award icon in your post
2. Link to the person(s) who nominated you
3. Answer the 10 questions about yourself
4. Nominate as many bloggers as you want to receive the award
5. Ask your nominees 10 new
questions
6. Link your nominees and
let them know they've been nominated
7. Post the Stork Award
icon on your blog side bar if you are so inclined
My Questions from Teresa:
1. Do you like to plan things out in detail or be spontaneous? I tend to be spontaneous. Some of our best vacations have been the ones we fly by the seat of our pants without reservations and decide as we go what we want to do. We once traveled to Pennsylvania to watch Oregon State football play Penn State. Our only planned activities were the game, and to spend one night in Philadelphia site seeing. After that, it was a toss up. We ended up visiting Gettysburg, then driving down to Delaware where we had dinner and spent the night. The next morning we took the Cape May-Lewis Ferry across to New Jersey, drove to Atlantic City where we walked on the boardwalk for an hour. Then we had to make a quick drive back to Philadelphia to catch our flight home. It was an amazing trip, and we did SO much in just that one weekend!
2. What embarrasses you? Feeling stupid in front of people.
3. What are some of your favorite websites? The websites I spend the majority of my time on are kind of boring in that it is nothing unusual. Blogger so I can read all of your blogs, Facebook, and Pinterest. That's about it.
4. How would you explain your basic life philosophy? Growing up, I lived by the philosophy that if I had to hide what I was doing, I probably shouldn't be doing it. I was a goody two shoes. Now, I try to live by the idea that we CHOOSE our response to what life throws at us. We can't control what all life has to hand us, but we CAN choose how we respond to it. CHOOSE to be happy. I am not always successful at this, but I try to be.
5. Would you rather be hated or forgotten? Ouch. This is a really tough question. I absolutely can't stand to be hated, or to have people mad at me. On the other hand, it's kind of a terrible thought to think that I might not make an impact on the people around me and they forget me. Between the two, I guess I'd rather be forgotten, because I probably wouldn't know the difference. If someone hated me, it would grate on me forever.
6. What do you like least about yourself? My insecurities (read above). I wish I was a more self confident person. I know who I am and what I stand for, but it turns me inside out to have someone be mad at me.
7. Do you have a favorite number? Any particular reason why you like that number? In high school, playing sports, I always had #11 or #12. No particular reason that I can remember at all. Right now, my favorite number is each week I get to count down in this pregnancy!
8. If you could try out any job for a day, what would you like to try? I would want to be on the coaching staff of a softball team playing in the College World Series!
9. If you could go back in history, who would you like to meet? Jesus. Without question.
10. How are you, really? I am extremely happy to be growing these twins, but this past week has turned a corner on the difficulty level. I am getting more exhausted more easily. My hands hurt and seem to be getting worse due to pregnancy induced carpal tunnel. I don't sleep very well at all, and I have been really emotional this week. I am otherwise doing very well!
All of you who have shared your stories, and also have shared your friendship with me in this blogging community, mean more than simple words can express. Any time I nominate my bloggie friends for awards, I inevitably leave some of you out. Please know that all of you are important and have a special place in my heart.
For this special award, I am nominating those that I have felt the most love and support from through the ups and downs of my journey this past year. Your friendship is immeasurable and truly appreciated.
My nominees:
1. Teresa at Where the *Bleep* is Our Stork
2. Erin at The Gypsy Mama
3. Em at Teach Me to Braid
4. Stacie at Life As I Know It
5. Aubrey at Two Hearts and One Dream
6. Tonisha at I Can Do This
7. Aimee at Is It Time Yet?
8. Kimberly at No Good Eggs
9. Jane at Mine to Command
10. Aramis at It Only Takes One
11. Melissa at Ask An Infertile
My questions for you:
1. If you could live anywhere in the world (besides where you live now), where would it be?
2. What is your hidden talent that few people know about?
3. Who has been your biggest role model/mentor?
4. What is your fondest childhood memory?
5. If you could change something about yourself, what would it be?
6. What is your favorite holiday and why?
7. Do you have any collections and if so, what are they?
8. What is your most prized possession?
9. What is your love story? How did you and your husband meet?
10. How would you describe your personality?
One of my favorite thing to read on other people's blogs is answers to these types of questions. I love learning more about you, so I hope that you will participate! If not, well, I thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my blog :)
*Even if you are not listed as one of the nominees, please feel free to answer the questions if you want to!
5. Aubrey at Two Hearts and One Dream
6. Tonisha at I Can Do This
7. Aimee at Is It Time Yet?
8. Kimberly at No Good Eggs
9. Jane at Mine to Command
10. Aramis at It Only Takes One
11. Melissa at Ask An Infertile
My questions for you:
1. If you could live anywhere in the world (besides where you live now), where would it be?
2. What is your hidden talent that few people know about?
3. Who has been your biggest role model/mentor?
4. What is your fondest childhood memory?
5. If you could change something about yourself, what would it be?
6. What is your favorite holiday and why?
7. Do you have any collections and if so, what are they?
8. What is your most prized possession?
9. What is your love story? How did you and your husband meet?
10. How would you describe your personality?
One of my favorite thing to read on other people's blogs is answers to these types of questions. I love learning more about you, so I hope that you will participate! If not, well, I thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my blog :)
*Even if you are not listed as one of the nominees, please feel free to answer the questions if you want to!
Friday, November 22, 2013
Two Truths and A Lie
Okay, I'll play. I follow several bloggie friends that have done this, so I've been tagged multiple times. However, I'm only going to list TWO truths and ONE lie, even though I've been tagged more than that.
If you are reading this, well, now YOU are tagged and you have to play because those are the rules :)
Tell us 3 things about you and make one of them a lie. Try to think about what other bloggers might already know about you, what they might not know, and what might shock them. The trick is to make it difficult to figure out which one is the lie.
Here are 3 things about me:
If you are reading this, well, now YOU are tagged and you have to play because those are the rules :)
Tell us 3 things about you and make one of them a lie. Try to think about what other bloggers might already know about you, what they might not know, and what might shock them. The trick is to make it difficult to figure out which one is the lie.
Here are 3 things about me:
- One of my favorite things to do is to take my nieces and nephews to play in the park.
- In high school, my friends and I stole toilet paper out of port-a-potties to tp people's houses with.
- While in college, a group of friends and I snuck onto a golf course in the middle of the night to go swimming for golf balls in one of the ponds.
THE RULES:
Comment below with which one you think is a lie.
Make a new post on your blog and play the game.
After you get a bunch of guesses (or whenever you feel like it), make a new post to reveal the two truths and the lie and explain them if you want.
Tag! You're it!
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Christmas Babies
Lady in grocery store: "you look like you're about to pop."
Me: "I still have quite a ways to go yet."
Lady: "maybe you'll have a Christmas baby."
Me: "I really hope not."
Lady launches into a story about the Christmas babies in her family and how much fun it is, reassuring me that it is the greatest thing ever, totally didn't hear me when I said there's two babies in there. I ended up walking away to finish my shopping.
This same conversation, almost word for word, has happened 5 times in the last week. FIVE TIMES! All but one of these conversations were with total strangers.
Okay, it's not that I have anything against Christmas babies. However, I would really like to NOT spend Christmas in the NICU because my babies are born so early. I will be 33 weeks at Christmas. Chances are that they would be healthy and be okay, but it's a little too early not to expect time in the NICU at that point.
I find it funny and a little annoying all at the same time. I enjoy people being excited about our pregnancy and our babies. I really don't mind at all when people touch my belly. I think it's kind of fun actually. However, that is limited to people I KNOW! I really don't understand total strangers asking when your due date is, or giving advice, or TOUCHING you without asking.
It's different when you are actually engaging with that person who is a stranger, but I find it odd when you are just going about your business and they specifically go out of their way to stop you.
I told my husband early on that I never realized that people get a little weird around a pregnant woman. It's as if normal rules of etiquette fly out the window. I made that observation way back in the first trimester. Little did I know then what I would be in for now!
For the most part, I do find it funny and get a kick out of it. However, I suspect the whole Christmas baby conversation is going to get a little old, especially when it's already happened 5 times before Thanksgiving....
Me: "I still have quite a ways to go yet."
Lady: "maybe you'll have a Christmas baby."
Me: "I really hope not."
Lady launches into a story about the Christmas babies in her family and how much fun it is, reassuring me that it is the greatest thing ever, totally didn't hear me when I said there's two babies in there. I ended up walking away to finish my shopping.
This same conversation, almost word for word, has happened 5 times in the last week. FIVE TIMES! All but one of these conversations were with total strangers.
Okay, it's not that I have anything against Christmas babies. However, I would really like to NOT spend Christmas in the NICU because my babies are born so early. I will be 33 weeks at Christmas. Chances are that they would be healthy and be okay, but it's a little too early not to expect time in the NICU at that point.
I find it funny and a little annoying all at the same time. I enjoy people being excited about our pregnancy and our babies. I really don't mind at all when people touch my belly. I think it's kind of fun actually. However, that is limited to people I KNOW! I really don't understand total strangers asking when your due date is, or giving advice, or TOUCHING you without asking.
It's different when you are actually engaging with that person who is a stranger, but I find it odd when you are just going about your business and they specifically go out of their way to stop you.
I told my husband early on that I never realized that people get a little weird around a pregnant woman. It's as if normal rules of etiquette fly out the window. I made that observation way back in the first trimester. Little did I know then what I would be in for now!
For the most part, I do find it funny and get a kick out of it. However, I suspect the whole Christmas baby conversation is going to get a little old, especially when it's already happened 5 times before Thanksgiving....
Monday, November 18, 2013
28 Weeks and Another Shower
Saturday marked 28 weeks for these babies of mine! I can't believe we have made it this far. I feel the babies moving around all the time now. Actually, we can SEE the babies moving around also. Such a cool thing to watch my belly ripple and jump. Hubby actually got to see it the other night too. He was so excited.
I still worry. I don't think that will ever stop. I worry about all the things that could go wrong, because I know that it DOES happen sometimes. My worst fear is to have one of them be delivered stillborn. I know too many people, in real life and in the blogoshere, that have had stillborn babies to not have that be a real fear. I will worry until I get to see them and hold them, and then a whole new set of worries will begin!
Anyway, enough of that! Saturday was also my second baby shower! This time it was with my side of the family and friends. I had a few friends from high school and college that came and it was so great to see them! I can't even begin to express how much it meant to me that so many came to help celebrate my babies.
Saturday also happened to be my Grandma's 80th birthday. After the shower, the men in the family joined us and we had pizza and cake to celebrate her birthday.
Here are a few pictures from the day:
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| My sister has a good friend that makes cakes and does an incredible job decorating them! |
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| The entire cake was edible, including the little babies on top. Although nobody ate them.... haha! |
Do you remember me telling you about my cousins announcing their pregnancy via Facebook? The same cousins that announced at Christmas last year that they were pregnant, only to later have a miscarriage? Well, anyway, they just had their baby girl in October. Between my newest niece, my cousin's new baby, and these twins, we are going to have lots of babies running around our family! By the way, I should mention that I am incredibly happy for my cousins and their adorable little girl. I just had a hard time with both of their pregnancy announcements when they happened.
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| My cousin-in-law and my sister with the newest members of our family. |
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| Getting some practice at holding two babies. Oh wait! I'm holding FOUR babies! |
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| Hubby's turn! |
Hubby is pretty funny about holding babies. When they are newborn, he absolutely has to sit down to hold them. He is petrified of "breaking" them. He loves babies and loves to hold them, but he must be sitting down. Actually, he has recently gotten better and will sometimes stand to hold our niece, but he absolutely refused to stand while holding these two. I think he's going to have to get used to it pretty quickly, because in a few months, he's not going to have a choice!
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| Feeling very much like a beached whale at the end of the days festivities. |
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| My adorable 8 week old niece with her mohawk. She was born with a lot of hair, but this is what she has left! Haha! |
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| All the loot from the shower |
Okay, and now I will close by sharing my 28 week belly pics:
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| And there it is.... or should I say, there they are? |
Friday, November 15, 2013
MFM Appointment
I know I promised to update yesterday and tell you all about my appointment, but....well, that just didn't happen, as you know.
The appointment went really, really good. I am so happy with where we are at right now. It actually seems quite unbelievable how well things have been going, minus a few minor hiccups here and there.
We got to see both the babies, although now that they are bigger, the image seemed very obscure to Hubby and I on the screen. The u/s tech said it may seem that way to us, but to her, she is able to see what she needs to a million times better. She is able to zoom into each organ and see details so much more clearly now. For us, we are just lucky she is telling us what she is looking at or we would never know! How would we know that little line on the screen was the diaphragm? Or that certain blob was the kidneys? You get the idea. We can tell the heart, since you can see it beating. And of course we could make out their profiles... barely. ha!
Anyway, both babies look good. The tech still wasn't able to see the one arch in the heart that has been eluding us every time on Baby A. Baby girl is just not in a good position for the tech to see it. The MFM doctor says that there is no reason to suspect any abnormality there though because everything else looks so good.
Both babies are head down. Baby A has been head down every single time, but Baby B seems to go back and forth. As of Wednesday, he was also head down. Hopefully he stays that way. Initially, only Baby A had to be head down to attempt a vaginal birth. However, Baby B appears to be ginormous! His head measures 3 WEEKS bigger than his gestational age! Dr. MFM says that is okay, because it's symmetrical to the rest of his measurements. However, if he ends up breech, they do not want to attempt a vaginal birth because that would risk his head getting stuck. That just makes me shudder to think of his little (giant) body being delivered, but his head stuck inside. I mean, what the heck do they DO in that situation. I agree with her assessment. I don't want to find out. As much as the thought of a c-section terrifies me, the other scenario is much more terrifying. But, maybe he will behave and stay head down and we won't even have to worry about it.
Right now, Baby A is 2 lbs, 4 oz. Baby B is 2 lbs, 15 oz. He's basically 3 pounds already!!! I have no idea what percentile these measurements put the babies in, but I know they are on the upper end, especially our linebacker. When Dr. MFM was talking to us about delivery scenarios, she mentioned our due date being Feb. 7th. I corrected her and told her it's the 8th. She laughed and said, "oh my gosh that makes Baby B even BIGGER!" We all thought that was pretty funny.
She talked to us about how if/when we make it to 38 weeks, that will be January 25th, and they will want to induce at that point. She said they would be very comfortable if we can even just make it to the 36 week mark, which would be January 11th. It was so exciting to be talking about all this. It still seems so far away, but yet, it's really not. I just hope things continue to go smoothly and we actually can keep these babies cooking until that point.
I was very pleased that Dr. MFM also took the time to talk about my liver issue and the rash I have. At this point, I only have one liver marker that is elevated. Not a lot, but enough to just keep an eye on. She talked about how they have ruled out the 3 serious situations that could be the cause for my rash. It's difficult to diagnose the rash, other than it just being a straight up pregnancy rash due to the stretching of the skin and hormonal changes my body is going through. It could be PUPPPs, but it would be a very mild case at this point. She called it a mystery rash that seems to be nothing serious, just annoying. They did prescribe a steroid cream that I can use, but I have hesitated on rushing to get it. I haven't even taken Tylenol this whole pregnancy. I've always been one to take medicine only as a last resort if absolutely necessary. She assured me that the topical steroid is safe, and we are far enough along in our pregnancy that everything is already formed in the babies and we don't need to worry about birth defects. At this point, their (the babies) job is to just keep growing!
That made sense to me, but I asked her, what about autism and things like that. I loved her answer in that Dr. MFM explained that there is not conclusive evidence as to what the specific causes of autism are. She talked about several studies she has participated in, and all the research that is being done on autism, but there just aren't solid answers at this point. I appreciated the fact that she didn't just come out and say it's nothing to worry about. She doesn't THINK that it is a concern, but she couldn't guarantee it either. Her final recommendation was, if one of the babies were to come out and ended up with something like autism, to ask myself if I would look back and regret using the cream and always wonder if it was to blame? My thoughts at this point: I don't know. For now, I am choosing to suffer through the itching.
Also, I passed my glucose test that I took on Tuesday! Wooooo Hooooooo! I am soooo happy that I don't have to worry about that! Dr. MFM said she was very impressed and that I had an outstanding pancreas. Go me :)
We got a few profile pics of the babies, although, as I mentioned earlier, they aren't the best or most clear images.
The appointment went really, really good. I am so happy with where we are at right now. It actually seems quite unbelievable how well things have been going, minus a few minor hiccups here and there.
We got to see both the babies, although now that they are bigger, the image seemed very obscure to Hubby and I on the screen. The u/s tech said it may seem that way to us, but to her, she is able to see what she needs to a million times better. She is able to zoom into each organ and see details so much more clearly now. For us, we are just lucky she is telling us what she is looking at or we would never know! How would we know that little line on the screen was the diaphragm? Or that certain blob was the kidneys? You get the idea. We can tell the heart, since you can see it beating. And of course we could make out their profiles... barely. ha!
Anyway, both babies look good. The tech still wasn't able to see the one arch in the heart that has been eluding us every time on Baby A. Baby girl is just not in a good position for the tech to see it. The MFM doctor says that there is no reason to suspect any abnormality there though because everything else looks so good.
Both babies are head down. Baby A has been head down every single time, but Baby B seems to go back and forth. As of Wednesday, he was also head down. Hopefully he stays that way. Initially, only Baby A had to be head down to attempt a vaginal birth. However, Baby B appears to be ginormous! His head measures 3 WEEKS bigger than his gestational age! Dr. MFM says that is okay, because it's symmetrical to the rest of his measurements. However, if he ends up breech, they do not want to attempt a vaginal birth because that would risk his head getting stuck. That just makes me shudder to think of his little (giant) body being delivered, but his head stuck inside. I mean, what the heck do they DO in that situation. I agree with her assessment. I don't want to find out. As much as the thought of a c-section terrifies me, the other scenario is much more terrifying. But, maybe he will behave and stay head down and we won't even have to worry about it.
Right now, Baby A is 2 lbs, 4 oz. Baby B is 2 lbs, 15 oz. He's basically 3 pounds already!!! I have no idea what percentile these measurements put the babies in, but I know they are on the upper end, especially our linebacker. When Dr. MFM was talking to us about delivery scenarios, she mentioned our due date being Feb. 7th. I corrected her and told her it's the 8th. She laughed and said, "oh my gosh that makes Baby B even BIGGER!" We all thought that was pretty funny.
She talked to us about how if/when we make it to 38 weeks, that will be January 25th, and they will want to induce at that point. She said they would be very comfortable if we can even just make it to the 36 week mark, which would be January 11th. It was so exciting to be talking about all this. It still seems so far away, but yet, it's really not. I just hope things continue to go smoothly and we actually can keep these babies cooking until that point.
I was very pleased that Dr. MFM also took the time to talk about my liver issue and the rash I have. At this point, I only have one liver marker that is elevated. Not a lot, but enough to just keep an eye on. She talked about how they have ruled out the 3 serious situations that could be the cause for my rash. It's difficult to diagnose the rash, other than it just being a straight up pregnancy rash due to the stretching of the skin and hormonal changes my body is going through. It could be PUPPPs, but it would be a very mild case at this point. She called it a mystery rash that seems to be nothing serious, just annoying. They did prescribe a steroid cream that I can use, but I have hesitated on rushing to get it. I haven't even taken Tylenol this whole pregnancy. I've always been one to take medicine only as a last resort if absolutely necessary. She assured me that the topical steroid is safe, and we are far enough along in our pregnancy that everything is already formed in the babies and we don't need to worry about birth defects. At this point, their (the babies) job is to just keep growing!
That made sense to me, but I asked her, what about autism and things like that. I loved her answer in that Dr. MFM explained that there is not conclusive evidence as to what the specific causes of autism are. She talked about several studies she has participated in, and all the research that is being done on autism, but there just aren't solid answers at this point. I appreciated the fact that she didn't just come out and say it's nothing to worry about. She doesn't THINK that it is a concern, but she couldn't guarantee it either. Her final recommendation was, if one of the babies were to come out and ended up with something like autism, to ask myself if I would look back and regret using the cream and always wonder if it was to blame? My thoughts at this point: I don't know. For now, I am choosing to suffer through the itching.
Also, I passed my glucose test that I took on Tuesday! Wooooo Hooooooo! I am soooo happy that I don't have to worry about that! Dr. MFM said she was very impressed and that I had an outstanding pancreas. Go me :)
We got a few profile pics of the babies, although, as I mentioned earlier, they aren't the best or most clear images.
 |
| Baby A's profile |
 |
| Baby B's profile |
 |
| Both heads together. You can see how much BIGGER baby B's head is! Holy cow! |
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