I passed...

I've always just assumed that this would be the point in this pregnancy that things would start falling apart. I prepared myself for it. I made sure to have a lot of the big things completed just in case I ended up on bed rest or something. For the most part the things that are left to do are things that really don't NEED to be complete in order to bring our babies home and here I am, not on any type of bed rest or restriction. 

Similarly, I was always SURE I would end up with gestational diabetes. I've read that PCOS'ers are more likely candidates and twin mamas are also at a higher risk-- NO GD here! Yahoo. Thank goodness because my cravings this pregnancy have been for summer fruits/berries, corn on the cob and sweets (in moderation of course!)... and that would have been painful if just as they were coming into season I had to step away from them! 

One more bridge crossed. Now, I start marking off the milestones in terms of weeks. Right now I'm thinking in terms of two week increments-- back to this again?!?! The first milestone will be in 6 days when I am 28 weeks and officially in the third trimester no matter what book or website you are reading. I can't believe we are already here, exciting and terrifying all at the same time! 

27 weeks

How Far Along: 27 weeks

How Big are the Babies? They are each the size of a rutabaga.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I'm up 19lbs since retrieval- that puts me back to where I was a couple of weeks ago. 

Maternity Clothes: Anytime I leave the house I'm wearing maternity. 

Movement: The movements are changing, I have been feeling a lot of bums lately. 

Belly button in or out? It is still in.

What I miss: I'm still missing my sweet, sweet sleep!

Milestones: Seeing my local OB for the last time. We will now transfer to the doctor who will hopefully deliver the boys. We've also moved on to appointments every two weeks instead of four.

Food Cravings:  Corn on the cob and brownies- hmmm, hopefully that GD test comes back negative!

Aversions: Eggs..... still grossing me out.

Symptoms:  Exhaustion, very tightly stretched sore belly skin, numb belly button, leg cramps, lots of soreness, ligament pain.
Best Moment this week: Seeing the boys again this morning and finding out they are both over 2 lbs. now!

Funny Moment: ???
Tip of the Week: There are coupons EVERYWHERE for baby stuff. Find them and use them! 

What I'm looking forward to: Meeting our new doctor in a couple of weeks and hopefully seeing the little munchkins again SOON!

27 weeks

Lists...

I said awhile ago that my intention was to have most of the big things taken care of by the time I reached 28 weeks.

For anyone who is keeping track, that is about a week and a half away. Um, how did that happen?

So, I thought I'd compile of list of things that still need to be done and you can all laugh, point and ask me how I intend to get all of it done in a little more than a week when I have out of town guests coming twice in the middle of this time frame, and have about the same amount of energy as an infant.

• Sew a blanket for each baby.
• Sew one more crib skirt.
• Sew and hang two curtain panels with black-out liner.
• Sew a couple more changing pad covers.
• Remove unnecessary items from the nursery (two walkers, play saucer, pack & play) and find a place for them.
• Clean two bouncy seats and a swing that were passed down to us- find a place for them.
• Finish all baby laundry up-to 3 months. 
• Get nursery closet organized.
• Finalize list of things that need to be purchased before their arrival. 
• Finish wall hangings for over crib and changing table. 
• Get guest bedroom/office organized for visitors pre-babies and helpers post-babies.
• Re-arrange master bedroom to accommodate pack & play, rocker and other baby items.

That might be all, but I feel like I'm missing a thing or two. I have about 12 days and my list has 12 items on it... maybe, just maybe it is do-able??!?! 

26 weeks

How Far Along: 26 weeks

How Big are the Babies? They are each the size of a head of lettuce.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I'm up 18lbs since retrieval- which means I lost a pound this week somehow. I promise you I'm not sure how this happened. The number of baby shower cupcakes that I consumed was slightly obscene. 

Maternity Clothes: Anytime I leave the house I'm wearing maternity. 

Movement: These babies kick all.the.time. When they calm down for long periods of time it freaks me out!

Belly button in or out? It is still in, and getting shallower. The weird part is that it is now getting kinda numb... SO WEIRD!

What I miss: Sleeping well at night.

Milestones: Having my very own baby shower! It was amazing and my family did a fantastic job with every single detail and to top it all off, we ended up with a ton of great gifts!

Food Cravings:  Still cake, those cupcakes at my baby shower were pretty much AMAZING :)

Aversions: Eggs..... still grossing me out.

Symptoms:  Exhaustion, very tightly stretched sore belly skin, numb belly button, leg cramps, lots of soreness, ligament pain and the return of  the horrible heartburn.
Best Moment this week: Probably hearing both of the boys' heartbeats after the spotting scare. Talk about relief! Then, within hours I was sitting at MY baby shower. After a scary Friday, the weekend ended up being pretty amazing!

Funny Moment: Finding myself with a q-tip in my nose when I was meaning to put it in my ear.... my attention span is about 2 seconds these days. 
Tip of the Week: Doing six loads of laundry in one morning may be too much for a body carrying two tiny babes. Spread out the work, even if you've finally found some energy. 

What I'm looking forward to: Seeing our sweet boys again in a week :)

Everybody is ok!!

The boys are both fine... Cervix is closed, firm and long. Better safe than sorry :)

Ps... It would be ok with me if I never felt another speculum in me while pregnant. Holy crap!

Spotting...

Never something that is welcomed in pregnancy, and at 25.5 weeks it has won me a last minute appointment this afternoon.
I thought for sure when I called to report the very small amount of spotting (only there on the toilet paper) that is just pinkish and not red, the nurse would tell me to take it easy and not worry too much. Instead she told me they'd like to see me this afternoon, and to lay down until my appointment.
I'm doing my best not to freak out, and I keep telling myself they are just being cautious. Hopefully we will leave the clinic with orders to take it easy, but still be able to leave town for our shower this weekend.

Horizontal Stripes...

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22 weeks

24 weeks 

25 weeks

It looks like the boys spread out somewhere between 22 and 24 weeks, now they are just GROWING in every direction. I'm still wearing a few non-maternity things and when I put them on I always get a good laugh. Things like jackets are always the funniest. Since I'll be the largest during the summer, I don't feel like I need to buy maternity jackets, but it makes for comical situations when I try to zip the outerwear I already own!

In other news, the boys are constantly hiccuping and I find it to be about the cutest things ever... until about the 7th time in one day especially because when one little monster has them there is this super weird feeling down LOW (I'm assuming their heads) and then an aftershock with his feet up higher. After this goes on for a minute or two, his brother wakes up and starts dancing around making my belly into some kind of three ring circus. Hubs was able to feel them hiccuping last night and it was a pretty fun moment :)

25 weeks

How Far Along: 25 weeks

How Big are the Babies? They are each the size of a head of cauliflower. Each should be somewhere around 2 lbs. 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I'm up 19lbs since retrieval, that is one pound for this week.

Maternity Clothes: Anytime I leave the house I'm wearing maternity. 

Movement: Lots of it! My nurse was talking about kick counts at my last appointment and while it isn't totally necessary to be doing them at this point, I've found myself counting a couple times a day right after meals. The general rule is 10 kicks/movements in two hours. I typically get ten in less than ten minutes. 

Belly button in or out? It is still in and feeling SO weird!

What I miss: Sleeping well at night. 

Milestones: Surpassing viability. I was always afraid I'd wait and wait to get to 24 weeks and then I would get there and everything would come crashing down- so far so good!

Food Cravings:  Garlic bread, cake- healthy, right?

Aversions: Eggs..... still grossing me out.

Symptoms:  Exhaustion, very tightly stretched sore belly skin, leg cramps, lots of soreness, ligament pain and the return of  the horrible heartburn.
Best Moment this week: Best and worst get mixed together this week... Over the weekend we sat out on the deck and washed a ton of toys and baby gear that we got second hand from various sources. It was fun to get everything all cleaned up for the boys until we realized that THIS is the year after a lifetime in the PNW that my body decided seasonal allergies would be fun. 

Funny Moment: Nothing this week.
Tip of the Week: Listen to your body. If your body tells you to rest, DO IT. 

What I'm looking forward to: Our baby shower this weekend!


I'll try to remember to take a new picture today and either add it onto this post, or post it tomorrow!

24 weeks

How Far Along: 24 weeks

How Big are the Babies? They are each the size of a cantaloupe.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I'm up 18lbs since retrieval. My doctor has not said a single word about my weight gain, so I'm just assuming I'm on track. 

Maternity Clothes: Yep, and I may need to buy a few more things.

Movement: They are moving a lot and those four little feet LOVE the right side of my rib cage!

Belly button in or out? It gets a little more shallow with each passing day!

What I miss: Sleeping well at night. 

Milestones: VIABILITY!!!! I don't want to see these boys on the outside of my body anytime soon, but it does make me feel so much better to have reached this point. I feel like time is going to fly from here on out!

Food Cravings:  Melon, chocolate milk and cereal.

Aversions: Eggs..... still grossing me out.

Symptoms:  Exhaustion, very tightly stretched sore belly skin, leg cramps, lots of soreness, ligament pain and the return of  the horrible heartburn.
Best Moment this week: Seeing the boys again, feeling a lot of movement, and finishing one crib skirt.

Funny Moment: I can't think of anything specific, but I always think it is funny when their big kicks catch me off guard and cause me to jump.
Tip of the Week: Back to the water... I feel SO much better when I drink enough to fill a kiddie pool in a day. It means a lot of bathroom trips, but it is worth it. 

What I'm looking forward to: Our baby shower- a week from this Saturday!!

23 week ultrasound

The boys looked perfect this morning! Both were playing nice and allowed the tech to get all of the measurements she was looking for- which was a nice change from their usual antics! I did end up getting dizzy and hot during the ultrasound and had to turn onto my side, but she managed to finish the majority of the ultrasound with me turned away from her.

The boys are weighing in at about 1lb 4oz and 1lb 5oz. Both of those little buggers looked like they were growing right on track. I always love to see how they are positioned. I guessed right, both of their feet are right together and spend A LOT of time kicking each other (and me in the process!). She also confirmed that they were stretching up and getting really good at finding my ribs- little stinkers :)

After spending about an hour getting all of the important measurements and just watching them be so dang cute we moved on to every one's favorite the wand! Thankfully we managed to get a great look at my cervix which was plenty long and not funneling or opening at all. We also found that Baby A's placenta has moved away from my cervix and is no longer in the danger zone. So, at this point we don't have anything (other than being pregnant with multiples) that will inhibit a natural-ish childbirth.

We have one final appointment with our current OB in four weeks at 27 weeks. That appointment will be a long one- glucose test, ultrasound and a follow-up with our doctor. Then two weeks later we'll start seeing the doctor that will (hopefully) deliver the boys. It seems crazy that we are just four weeks away from starting two week appointments!

Question for multiple mamas out there.... did you take a childbirth class? We've heard from some that it was a little useless for multiple pregnancies, but from others that it was worth the time and money to take it. Anyone want to weigh in on this one???

23 Weeks

How Far Along: 23 weeks

How Big are the Babies? They are each the size of a pomegranate and about 10.5 inches long.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I'm up 16lbs since retrieval. I guess the weight gain is going to come in spurts.

Maternity Clothes: In general I'm pretty much in maternity all the time... at least anytime I have to actually look put together :)

Movement: They move pretty often and are finding their way to my ribs... not my favorite place to feel their sweet little movements! We're starting to be able to see their movements from the outside too... creepy, but so fun!

Belly button in or out? It gets a little more shallow with each passing day!

What I miss: Sleeping like a normal person.

Milestones: 23 week ultrasound! I'll be back later with an update :)

Food Cravings:  Chocolate milkshakes.... protein, right?

Aversions: Eggs. Still grossing me out.

Symptoms:  Exhaustion, leg cramps, lots of soreness and ligament pain. 
Best Moment this week: Finding some really great things (for great deals!) at consignment sales. I've tried not to buy too much considering we have a baby shower coming up, but I keep thinking what if we get loads of clothes and none of the gear- better to just grab it now at cheap prices.... right?

Funny Moment: I was at the grocery store this week and stopped on the pickle aisle, I stood there looking for a couple of minutes deciding what I wanted. I noticed that there was someone else standing there looking also, but I didn't really pay any attention until an older gentleman walked by with a big grin on his face kind of chuckling under his breath. I then looked to the left and noticed that it was me and another visibly pregnant woman standing there both with our hands on our bellies looking at pickles that left this man laughing. 
Tip of the Week: There is no reason not to get prepared for baby (babies) nice and early. The more you are able to get done early on, the more you'll be able to rest in the end. And for twin mamas that could mean the difference of keeping the babies in a couple more weeks. Totally worth the planning ahead! 

What I'm looking forward to: Our baby shower! It is so surreal, but I'm SO SO SO excited- 2.5 weeks!