Baby A
Baby B
I'm in love.
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Saturday, February 25, 2012
pictures
Here are a couple of pictures of the boys from this week. These are the 3D pictures from our MFM appointment on February 21st.
Baby A
Baby B
I'm in love.
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Baby A
Baby B
I'm in love.
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Thursday, February 23, 2012
elective u/s
We had our elective u/s yesterday.
Our appointment was originally scheduled for 1:45pm but it got changed to 2:45pm the night before the appointment. I was really irritated that the appointment got moved from the original time because Kara had family coming from out of town for the appointment. It did all work out in the end though.
Kara and I met her family (mom and stepfather) for lunch around noon. We had a nice lunch. They had not seen me since Thanksgiving so I am sure that I looked a bit different. I am starting to learn that I can no longer eat a "normal" sized meal in one sitting. I had soup and salad for lunch and my comfort level went to close to nothing half-way through the meal. I'm starting to think that snacking will be my friend until the end of this pregnancy. My stomach just does not have any room. We went our separate ways after lunch and decided to meet up for the appointment at 2:45pm. Kara and I went home for a bit to rest. I was glad at this point the appointment had gotten moved because I need to seriously digest some food!
A funny story. On our way home I got another bloody nose. I was fumbling around in the car for something (other than my white sweatshirt) with which to stop the bleeding and I could not find a single item. Kara being the "girl scout" told me to grab the bandanna off of her head. So smart! So instead of using my white sweatshirt as a tissue I used Kara's white bandanna! Haha. I had to commend Kara though for going into "mommy mode" in such quick fashion. I'm just preparing her for after the boys arrive and one of them starts puking in the car while we are driving!
Of course we were almost late for our appointment. I think we are just preparing people for when the boys arrive and we are suddenly late to everything. We managed to walk into the door for the appointment right at 2:45pm. Of course everyone else was already waiting for us.
Another funny story. I had to fill out some paperwork for the appointment after I arrived to the office. I managed to get a paper cut while I was filling out the paperwork. If we haven't already learned from the reoccurring nosebleeds I am no longer a "normal" bleeder during this pregnancy. If I get a cut of any sort the blood just comes gushing out. Of course I did not think anything of the paper cut and I went on to finish my paperwork. I got up to turn in the paperwork and pay for the appointment. The u/s tech gave me a receipt to sign and I immediately noticed upon handing over the receipt that I had gotten blood all over the receipt. How embarrassing!?! I apologized profusely and asked the u/s tech if she wanted to print out another receipt. She gave me a weird look and then just had me drop the receipt in the folder myself. Oops.
So onto the u/s ... The room set-up was really nice. There was a projection screen on the wall and then a couple of other small tv monitors in other places in the room. I got to lay down on a nice comfy bed with my head elevated (that always helps) and watch the u/s from the screen the u/s tech was using for the u/s. I think our family loved seeing the boys!
The u/s tech started with Baby A. He was a bit shy. He kept his head tucked down for the first few minutes of the u/s but he eventually warmed up with some encouragement and we managed to get a couple of good face shots. Baby A once again had his left arm up over his head during the u/s. This was the same thing he did in the growth u/s the other day. I still think Baby A looks like me. He has a bit narrower of a face and seems a bit skinny than his brother. I actually wonder if he is longer because both Baby A and Baby B weigh the same at the moment. We also got to see Baby A open and close his mouth. It was neat. We did learn that Baby A is a bit of a "bed hog" and does not seem to share the womb very well with his brother. The u/s kept showing Baby A kick his legs out. He looked as comfortable as could be. So when we got to Baby B ...
He has zero room in the womb! Poor Baby B is rather smashed inside my belly. It was difficult to get any shots of Baby B because Baby A kept sneaking over to get in the pictures. It was super cute though because you could see Baby B take his arms and push Baby A out of the way. I now know why I feel Baby A kick more often than I feel Baby B! Baby B has no room in the inn. It looked like at one point that Baby B was giving Baby A kisses on the head. The u/s tech eventually had me lay on my right side. This change in position allowed Baby A to move further down in my pelvis and it suddenly gave Baby B more room to move around. This probably explains why recently I have been sleeping on my right side at night. It has been the most comfortable position. Interesting. Baby B is super cute! He looks like he has quite the muscles on his arms. He kept flexing his arm back and forth. It is probably from continually pushing his brother out of the way. We got some cute shots of Baby B with his fingers in his mouth. I think Baby B is going to be tough!
We were able to leave the u/s appointment with 4 b/w u/s pictures and 2 color u/s pictures. We were also given a DVD (set to music) of the entire u/s and a picture CD with 88 pictures from the appointment. Not too bad. Kara and I watched the DVD last night and we loved every minute of it! I am sure I will watch it several more times before the boys arrive.
Overall it was a great day. I am glad our family got to attend the appointment. I sometimes take for granted seeing the boys on the u/s screen over and over again so it is neat to see people's reactions the first time the boys pop up on a tv monitor.
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Our appointment was originally scheduled for 1:45pm but it got changed to 2:45pm the night before the appointment. I was really irritated that the appointment got moved from the original time because Kara had family coming from out of town for the appointment. It did all work out in the end though.
Kara and I met her family (mom and stepfather) for lunch around noon. We had a nice lunch. They had not seen me since Thanksgiving so I am sure that I looked a bit different. I am starting to learn that I can no longer eat a "normal" sized meal in one sitting. I had soup and salad for lunch and my comfort level went to close to nothing half-way through the meal. I'm starting to think that snacking will be my friend until the end of this pregnancy. My stomach just does not have any room. We went our separate ways after lunch and decided to meet up for the appointment at 2:45pm. Kara and I went home for a bit to rest. I was glad at this point the appointment had gotten moved because I need to seriously digest some food!
A funny story. On our way home I got another bloody nose. I was fumbling around in the car for something (other than my white sweatshirt) with which to stop the bleeding and I could not find a single item. Kara being the "girl scout" told me to grab the bandanna off of her head. So smart! So instead of using my white sweatshirt as a tissue I used Kara's white bandanna! Haha. I had to commend Kara though for going into "mommy mode" in such quick fashion. I'm just preparing her for after the boys arrive and one of them starts puking in the car while we are driving!
Of course we were almost late for our appointment. I think we are just preparing people for when the boys arrive and we are suddenly late to everything. We managed to walk into the door for the appointment right at 2:45pm. Of course everyone else was already waiting for us.
Another funny story. I had to fill out some paperwork for the appointment after I arrived to the office. I managed to get a paper cut while I was filling out the paperwork. If we haven't already learned from the reoccurring nosebleeds I am no longer a "normal" bleeder during this pregnancy. If I get a cut of any sort the blood just comes gushing out. Of course I did not think anything of the paper cut and I went on to finish my paperwork. I got up to turn in the paperwork and pay for the appointment. The u/s tech gave me a receipt to sign and I immediately noticed upon handing over the receipt that I had gotten blood all over the receipt. How embarrassing!?! I apologized profusely and asked the u/s tech if she wanted to print out another receipt. She gave me a weird look and then just had me drop the receipt in the folder myself. Oops.
So onto the u/s ... The room set-up was really nice. There was a projection screen on the wall and then a couple of other small tv monitors in other places in the room. I got to lay down on a nice comfy bed with my head elevated (that always helps) and watch the u/s from the screen the u/s tech was using for the u/s. I think our family loved seeing the boys!
The u/s tech started with Baby A. He was a bit shy. He kept his head tucked down for the first few minutes of the u/s but he eventually warmed up with some encouragement and we managed to get a couple of good face shots. Baby A once again had his left arm up over his head during the u/s. This was the same thing he did in the growth u/s the other day. I still think Baby A looks like me. He has a bit narrower of a face and seems a bit skinny than his brother. I actually wonder if he is longer because both Baby A and Baby B weigh the same at the moment. We also got to see Baby A open and close his mouth. It was neat. We did learn that Baby A is a bit of a "bed hog" and does not seem to share the womb very well with his brother. The u/s kept showing Baby A kick his legs out. He looked as comfortable as could be. So when we got to Baby B ...
He has zero room in the womb! Poor Baby B is rather smashed inside my belly. It was difficult to get any shots of Baby B because Baby A kept sneaking over to get in the pictures. It was super cute though because you could see Baby B take his arms and push Baby A out of the way. I now know why I feel Baby A kick more often than I feel Baby B! Baby B has no room in the inn. It looked like at one point that Baby B was giving Baby A kisses on the head. The u/s tech eventually had me lay on my right side. This change in position allowed Baby A to move further down in my pelvis and it suddenly gave Baby B more room to move around. This probably explains why recently I have been sleeping on my right side at night. It has been the most comfortable position. Interesting. Baby B is super cute! He looks like he has quite the muscles on his arms. He kept flexing his arm back and forth. It is probably from continually pushing his brother out of the way. We got some cute shots of Baby B with his fingers in his mouth. I think Baby B is going to be tough!
We were able to leave the u/s appointment with 4 b/w u/s pictures and 2 color u/s pictures. We were also given a DVD (set to music) of the entire u/s and a picture CD with 88 pictures from the appointment. Not too bad. Kara and I watched the DVD last night and we loved every minute of it! I am sure I will watch it several more times before the boys arrive.
Overall it was a great day. I am glad our family got to attend the appointment. I sometimes take for granted seeing the boys on the u/s screen over and over again so it is neat to see people's reactions the first time the boys pop up on a tv monitor.
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
growth u/s #1
We had a growth u/s with the MFM yesterday. Both babies appear to be doing just great!
Both Baby A and Baby B are weighing-in at 1 lb 5 oz. To get technical Baby A weighs 596 grams (59th percentile) and Baby B weighs 592 grams (58th percentile). It is great that each baby weighs just about the same. There can be growth discrepancies with twins. That is one reason for the frequent growth u/s's with the MFM office. We want to make certain that each baby is getting the proper nutrition. Each baby appears to be measuring at around 23w4d. So they are still a bit bigger for the gestational age but not enough where my due date will be changed at all. The u/s tech also took a look at the choroid cysts on the brain of Baby B and while the cysts are still visible they have decreased in size. The MFM explained that they do not expect the cysts to be gone at this point. So things seem to be looking good in that area too. There are still no other markers that would indicate a genetic problem of any sort.
They u/s tech also took some measurements of my cervix and it was measuring between 4cm - 4.6cm. It was measuring closer to 4cm with pressure applied on my abdomen. This means my cervical length has actually increased over the last week. Interesting. I will take it. I did not know that could happen.
We got a couple of really good 3D u/s pictures of both Baby A and Baby B. They are really our first glimpses into their facial characteristics. You can already tell that both Baby A and Baby B look completely different. I guess we don't have to worry about them being identical twins! And Baby A is a spitting image of me. It was weird. The u/s tech put the image on the screen and I immediately noticed the lips. Baby A has these super pouty lips. It took a few seconds and then it dawned on me that I was looking at myself. Crazy! Baby B is super cute too. Baby B has a broader and wider face. It actually looked like Baby B was smiling in the u/s picture. They are both the most adorable babies in the world. But my opinion is probably a bit biased.
Kara was not able to go the u/s appointment with me yesterday so I had my mom tag along to keep me company. Plus I thought it would be cool for her to get her first visual images of the boys. I really think she enjoyed herself. It was great to be able to share the moment with her. I think I only heard a few sniffles come from her direction!
A funny story. The MFM indicated that if I have any problems that I should never hesitate to go up to labor and delivery to get checked out. He said, "They are available all the the time. And that is their job." ... my response "Yep. I know." I guess I could have brought up the fact that I had already hauled my butt up to that floor two times in the past two weeks. But I left that part out! I am hoping that my trips to labor and delivery are over until at least May. And even then I only expect to make one more trip ... to birth these babies!
We are scheduled to go back to the MFM for another growth u/s in a month (March 20th).
I will post u/s pictures as soon as I get a chance. We should have a lot more after the elective u/s today.
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Both Baby A and Baby B are weighing-in at 1 lb 5 oz. To get technical Baby A weighs 596 grams (59th percentile) and Baby B weighs 592 grams (58th percentile). It is great that each baby weighs just about the same. There can be growth discrepancies with twins. That is one reason for the frequent growth u/s's with the MFM office. We want to make certain that each baby is getting the proper nutrition. Each baby appears to be measuring at around 23w4d. So they are still a bit bigger for the gestational age but not enough where my due date will be changed at all. The u/s tech also took a look at the choroid cysts on the brain of Baby B and while the cysts are still visible they have decreased in size. The MFM explained that they do not expect the cysts to be gone at this point. So things seem to be looking good in that area too. There are still no other markers that would indicate a genetic problem of any sort.
They u/s tech also took some measurements of my cervix and it was measuring between 4cm - 4.6cm. It was measuring closer to 4cm with pressure applied on my abdomen. This means my cervical length has actually increased over the last week. Interesting. I will take it. I did not know that could happen.
We got a couple of really good 3D u/s pictures of both Baby A and Baby B. They are really our first glimpses into their facial characteristics. You can already tell that both Baby A and Baby B look completely different. I guess we don't have to worry about them being identical twins! And Baby A is a spitting image of me. It was weird. The u/s tech put the image on the screen and I immediately noticed the lips. Baby A has these super pouty lips. It took a few seconds and then it dawned on me that I was looking at myself. Crazy! Baby B is super cute too. Baby B has a broader and wider face. It actually looked like Baby B was smiling in the u/s picture. They are both the most adorable babies in the world. But my opinion is probably a bit biased.
Kara was not able to go the u/s appointment with me yesterday so I had my mom tag along to keep me company. Plus I thought it would be cool for her to get her first visual images of the boys. I really think she enjoyed herself. It was great to be able to share the moment with her. I think I only heard a few sniffles come from her direction!
A funny story. The MFM indicated that if I have any problems that I should never hesitate to go up to labor and delivery to get checked out. He said, "They are available all the the time. And that is their job." ... my response "Yep. I know." I guess I could have brought up the fact that I had already hauled my butt up to that floor two times in the past two weeks. But I left that part out! I am hoping that my trips to labor and delivery are over until at least May. And even then I only expect to make one more trip ... to birth these babies!
We are scheduled to go back to the MFM for another growth u/s in a month (March 20th).
I will post u/s pictures as soon as I get a chance. We should have a lot more after the elective u/s today.
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Monday, February 20, 2012
22w4d
How Far Along: 22w4d
Milestones: The baby measures between 10.5 inches and 11.8 inches during the fifth month and weighs about 12.7 ounces to 20.8 ounces. He has more developed eyes and lips and looks more and more like a newborn each day. He is sleeping in cycles. He sleeps about 12 to 14 hours a day.
Total Weight Gain: 16.2 lbs
Maternity Clothes: No change here. I am still in all maternity pants (except for sweatpants) and a mix of maternity shirts and non-maternity shirts. Some of my sweatshirts no longer fit.
The belly shot for this week ...
Sleep: My sleep is not too bad. As long as the braxton hicks contractions don't wake me up I am only up out of bed a couple of times a night. I have finally determined my "comfortable" sleeping positions so this helps a ton. I still miss sleeping on my stomach.
Best Moment of the Week: You can see the boys kicking from the outside! It is the coolest thing in the entire world. We discovered the outside movement at 22w3d. I kept getting some really big kicks from Baby A and I thought that it might be possible to see them kick from the outside. So I lifted up my shirt and watched in wonder as my belly moved up and down from Baby A. Kara was absolutely amazed. We stared at my belly like we were watching a television show. All we needed was some popcorn. I will have to restrain myself from lifting my shirt up in public whenever the boys get really active. It is especially fun to watch when both boys are kicking at the same time.
We also purchased our cribs this weekend. This was a super spontaneous trip to IKEA. There are very few days that both Kara and I have off at the same time. Plus I am getting much bigger and we knew that our time was getting limited where it would be possible for me to ride in the car for a few hours. I really hope we are not jumping the gun! The cribs looks amazing. We were terrified that we would get all the way to IKEA and the cribs would be out of stock. That would stink. We checked the inventory online before we left and it appeared that we would be okay. Of course when we got to IKEA we made a direct run for the cribs. They had six cribs in stock!! Yippee!!! We purchased the cribs and mattresses and then walked around the store of a bit. Kara made a comment that she had not seen me walk so fast in weeks as we were looking for the cribs. It's true. I hightailed it to those cribs. I added new pictures to the nursery page.
We took a Infant and Child CPR / First Aid class on Saturday. My parents took the class with us too. It was very informative and I think we all learned a lot. It is nice to just have some knowledge in the back of our brains should anything horrible happen. Of course we will hope that nothing bad happens. The class was long at about six hours and I was exhausted by the end. We took the class now because we knew it would be impossible for me to take it in a few weeks. I have taken CPR and First Aid classes several times over the last 10 years but it is amazing how often the protocol changes in terms of CPR guidelines.
Sex: Boys!
Food Cravings: No new cravings. I had my worst eating day ever last week though. Actually ... it was just my lunch that was horrible. I was absolutely starving at lunch and so I thought it was a good idea to consume ... 1 chicken sandwich, a side of pasta salad, a handful of Doritos, 4 hershey kisses, a cowtail, and 2 bowls of cereal. Yep. I ate it all. And that was just lunch. And I will not hang my head in shame. I promise to diet when the boys arrive!!!
Food Aversions: None
Symptoms: No new symptoms outside of the ones already discussed this week. I have had some good days and I have had some bad days. I really look forward to the good days and I try my best to get as much done as possible. On the bad days I just do my best to rest as much as possible. My back definitely hurts by the end of the evening. I am also starting to get some minor swelling in my feet and legs by the end of each evening. But both the backache and the swelling are always gone in the morning. I think both are just from the extra weight I am carrying around.
Upcoming Events: We have an MFM appointment on February 21st and our elective u/s is scheduled for February 22nd. We hope is it an uneventful but memorable week!
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Milestones: The baby measures between 10.5 inches and 11.8 inches during the fifth month and weighs about 12.7 ounces to 20.8 ounces. He has more developed eyes and lips and looks more and more like a newborn each day. He is sleeping in cycles. He sleeps about 12 to 14 hours a day.
Total Weight Gain: 16.2 lbs
Maternity Clothes: No change here. I am still in all maternity pants (except for sweatpants) and a mix of maternity shirts and non-maternity shirts. Some of my sweatshirts no longer fit.
The belly shot for this week ...
Sleep: My sleep is not too bad. As long as the braxton hicks contractions don't wake me up I am only up out of bed a couple of times a night. I have finally determined my "comfortable" sleeping positions so this helps a ton. I still miss sleeping on my stomach.
Best Moment of the Week: You can see the boys kicking from the outside! It is the coolest thing in the entire world. We discovered the outside movement at 22w3d. I kept getting some really big kicks from Baby A and I thought that it might be possible to see them kick from the outside. So I lifted up my shirt and watched in wonder as my belly moved up and down from Baby A. Kara was absolutely amazed. We stared at my belly like we were watching a television show. All we needed was some popcorn. I will have to restrain myself from lifting my shirt up in public whenever the boys get really active. It is especially fun to watch when both boys are kicking at the same time.
We also purchased our cribs this weekend. This was a super spontaneous trip to IKEA. There are very few days that both Kara and I have off at the same time. Plus I am getting much bigger and we knew that our time was getting limited where it would be possible for me to ride in the car for a few hours. I really hope we are not jumping the gun! The cribs looks amazing. We were terrified that we would get all the way to IKEA and the cribs would be out of stock. That would stink. We checked the inventory online before we left and it appeared that we would be okay. Of course when we got to IKEA we made a direct run for the cribs. They had six cribs in stock!! Yippee!!! We purchased the cribs and mattresses and then walked around the store of a bit. Kara made a comment that she had not seen me walk so fast in weeks as we were looking for the cribs. It's true. I hightailed it to those cribs. I added new pictures to the nursery page.
We took a Infant and Child CPR / First Aid class on Saturday. My parents took the class with us too. It was very informative and I think we all learned a lot. It is nice to just have some knowledge in the back of our brains should anything horrible happen. Of course we will hope that nothing bad happens. The class was long at about six hours and I was exhausted by the end. We took the class now because we knew it would be impossible for me to take it in a few weeks. I have taken CPR and First Aid classes several times over the last 10 years but it is amazing how often the protocol changes in terms of CPR guidelines.
Sex: Boys!
Food Cravings: No new cravings. I had my worst eating day ever last week though. Actually ... it was just my lunch that was horrible. I was absolutely starving at lunch and so I thought it was a good idea to consume ... 1 chicken sandwich, a side of pasta salad, a handful of Doritos, 4 hershey kisses, a cowtail, and 2 bowls of cereal. Yep. I ate it all. And that was just lunch. And I will not hang my head in shame. I promise to diet when the boys arrive!!!
Food Aversions: None
Symptoms: No new symptoms outside of the ones already discussed this week. I have had some good days and I have had some bad days. I really look forward to the good days and I try my best to get as much done as possible. On the bad days I just do my best to rest as much as possible. My back definitely hurts by the end of the evening. I am also starting to get some minor swelling in my feet and legs by the end of each evening. But both the backache and the swelling are always gone in the morning. I think both are just from the extra weight I am carrying around.
Upcoming Events: We have an MFM appointment on February 21st and our elective u/s is scheduled for February 22nd. We hope is it an uneventful but memorable week!
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly).
Mary
Thursday, February 16, 2012
our song
So music is important to us. This is definitely true for Kara. I'm not sure the girl could function if she did not have music in her life. Anyhow there is a song, "A Thousand Years" (Christina Perri) that has become my song for the babies. I play it for them all the time. Okay ... Yes. The song was originally meant as a love song for the Twilight series (blah). And by all intents and purposes it is a love song. However, if you listen to the lyrics it could really apply to a lot of other situations and in my case it applies to the love I have for these boys. It also applies to the feeling I have that my whole life has led up to this point. And eventually the day that I get to meet them. So you have to look beyond some of the lyrics. If I am in the car and the song comes on the radio I can't help but rub my belly and shed a few tears. I thought I would include some of the lyrics for my readers. You can interpret it however you choose to do so.
Time stands still
Beauty in all she is
I will be brave
I will not let anything take you away
What's standing in front of me
Every breath
Every hour has come to this
One step closer
I have died everyday waiting for you
Darling don't be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I love you for a thousand more
And all along I believed I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I love you for a thousand more
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly)!!
Mary
Time stands still
Beauty in all she is
I will be brave
I will not let anything take you away
What's standing in front of me
Every breath
Every hour has come to this
One step closer
I have died everyday waiting for you
Darling don't be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I love you for a thousand more
And all along I believed I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I love you for a thousand more
Please keep growing little ones (and stay in my belly)!!
Mary
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
our trip to labor and delivery (again)
We had to make another trip to labor and delivery yesterday. Not exactly what I had planned for the day.
The boys were super active all morning. I especially noticed a lot movement from Baby B. I was experiencing a normal amount of braxton hicks contractions. That means I was getting the contractions every 5 or 10 minutes. However, by the afternoon I was noticing some differences in the pain. My back was getting tight each time I had a braxton hicks contraction. And I was getting some cramping really low in my uterus. I decided to go hide in the bathroom at work for a few minutes because I was mentally exhausted. Of course when I went to the bathroom I noticed some bleeding. I actually did a double-take because I really could not believe it. I literally had every cuss word in the world come out of my mouth. It was not a ton of bleeding and it was only noticeable when I actually wiped with toilet paper. I kept checking because I seriously thought I was going crazy. I immediately panicked. I probably need to stop doing that! I knew I had to actually leave the bathroom in order for anything to happen. So I went out to the hallway and talked to Kara on the phone. I knew that I had to call the OB. I made a quick call to the OB and left a message on the nurse line. I got a return call a few minutes later and was told to head to labor and delivery. Didn't we just leave labor and delivery a few days ago?? So off we went ...
The funny part ... I actually felt really good in the car on the way over to labor and delivery. I felt better than I had in several weeks. I felt like I suddenly had more room in my stomach. Weird? I know. I kept thinking, "Jeepers! They are really going to start thinking that I am a crazy lady." We got to the hospital and got all checked-in. We did the usual checks. The nurse was able to pick-up both heartbeats on the monitor (though briefly because both babies move like crazy) and then she put me on a contraction monitor. The monitor picked-up some uterine irritability but nothing too extreme. Like I said ... I was feeling good at the moment. My BP was 116/82 and so it was fairly decent considering the amount of stress I was under at the moment. The resident came in a few minutes later to check me out. The not so fun part.
A funny story ...
The resident came in the room to do an exam. Of course this requires me to assemble the position. So there I was with my feet in the stirrups waiting for the doctor to come back with all the gear. Let's be thankful at this moment I was behind a curtain. The doctor was in front of the curtain at a cabinet getting everything she needed to do the exam. And in busts the maintenance man. There was no knock at the door. The maintenance man just opened the door and entered the room. This is the conversation I hear ...
Resident (now for all my lady readers you have to picture the resident having this conversation with a speculum in her hands): "Can I help you?"
Maintenance Man: "They said there was a clogged toilet in the room." (I imagine the maintenance man holding a plunger.)
Resident: "There is no toilet in this room."
Maintenance Man: "Well they gave me this room number."
Resident: "There is no toilet in this room."
Maintenance Man: "Hmm? Okay." (the maintenance man leaves the room)
The resident immediately peeks her head around the corner with the best face ever and says, "I swear that has never happened before. I don't think he had any idea this was an exam room"
Kara and I just busted out laughing.
Okay ... back to the important part ... the babies.
There was no sign of any bleeding and my cervix was firm and closed. All good signs. The resident also did a cervical u/s and an abdominal u/s at the request of my OB. The cervical u/s indicated that my cervix was still measuring at 3cm. The same as last week. And the abdominal u/s indicated no problems with either placenta. A problem with either placenta could cause some bleeding. However ... the abdominal u/s showed that Baby B was now breech! Huh? That had to have just happened because this morning I felt kicks from Baby B up in my ribs. So what caused the more intense contractions ... probably Baby B turning himself breech. The babies already have zero room in the womb and it probably took every ounce of strength for Baby B to turn himself around. And as a result my uterus went crazy. Does it explain the bleeding? No. But it could explain the pain. And like I said earlier in the blog I had been sitting in the hospital realizing that my uterus was the most relaxed it had been in days. Perhaps by turning himself around Baby B suddenly had more room. Who knows?
So I was discharged and sent home. Again. I now have new requirements for calling the OB ... I love how these keep changing as this pregnancy progresses. A small amount of bleeding is okay. A large amount of bleeding is not okay. I need to call the OB if I have a significant amount of bleeding. The braxton hicks contractions are normal. I only need to call the OB if the pain intensifies over a period of time and eventually becomes unbearable.
I am beyond thankful that the boys are doing just fine. They seem to be unaware of all the stress they are sending in my direction. There is something else that has happened to over the last 24 hours ... It is time for me to say good-bye to all I imagined this pregnancy to be. I thought the hard part would be getting pregnant. I never imagined that there could be any greater stress than what Kara and I went through last year to get pregnant. But then I got pregnant and the pregnancy has not exactly been the way I imagined it was going to be. And because of this I have enjoyed very few moments of this pregnancy. All I can think about is getting to June 2012 and hoping with every ounce of my being that I am holding two healthy baby boys in my arms. I look at other pregnant ladies and I am envious. But then I also think that perhaps their pregnancy is not how they imagined it to be too. I need to get to my viability date. I might be able to breath a bit more at that point. But we are still two weeks away from the point when doctors would even try to medically intervene with the babies. It seems like a very long two weeks. I also need to get over this fear I have of the OB thinking I am a crazy lady. I get nervous each time I call the OB because I feel as if I am "that patient" and I feel as if I am bothering the office for no reason. These are my boys. The most precious gift I have ever been given in my life and at the moment the only voice they have is my voice. So I need to just suck it up and realize that I am not going to be that patient that just shows up for monthly OB appointments and then has a problem free delivery at the end. Nope. I have worries. And my worries need to be addressed. And I do feel as if they are addressed immediately each time I express a concern. I just need to realize that I am probably going to have more worries. And that there will probably be more phone calls to the OBs office. And that's okay. There is nothing I can do to change it.
Please keep growing big and strong little ones.
Mary
The boys were super active all morning. I especially noticed a lot movement from Baby B. I was experiencing a normal amount of braxton hicks contractions. That means I was getting the contractions every 5 or 10 minutes. However, by the afternoon I was noticing some differences in the pain. My back was getting tight each time I had a braxton hicks contraction. And I was getting some cramping really low in my uterus. I decided to go hide in the bathroom at work for a few minutes because I was mentally exhausted. Of course when I went to the bathroom I noticed some bleeding. I actually did a double-take because I really could not believe it. I literally had every cuss word in the world come out of my mouth. It was not a ton of bleeding and it was only noticeable when I actually wiped with toilet paper. I kept checking because I seriously thought I was going crazy. I immediately panicked. I probably need to stop doing that! I knew I had to actually leave the bathroom in order for anything to happen. So I went out to the hallway and talked to Kara on the phone. I knew that I had to call the OB. I made a quick call to the OB and left a message on the nurse line. I got a return call a few minutes later and was told to head to labor and delivery. Didn't we just leave labor and delivery a few days ago?? So off we went ...
The funny part ... I actually felt really good in the car on the way over to labor and delivery. I felt better than I had in several weeks. I felt like I suddenly had more room in my stomach. Weird? I know. I kept thinking, "Jeepers! They are really going to start thinking that I am a crazy lady." We got to the hospital and got all checked-in. We did the usual checks. The nurse was able to pick-up both heartbeats on the monitor (though briefly because both babies move like crazy) and then she put me on a contraction monitor. The monitor picked-up some uterine irritability but nothing too extreme. Like I said ... I was feeling good at the moment. My BP was 116/82 and so it was fairly decent considering the amount of stress I was under at the moment. The resident came in a few minutes later to check me out. The not so fun part.
A funny story ...
The resident came in the room to do an exam. Of course this requires me to assemble the position. So there I was with my feet in the stirrups waiting for the doctor to come back with all the gear. Let's be thankful at this moment I was behind a curtain. The doctor was in front of the curtain at a cabinet getting everything she needed to do the exam. And in busts the maintenance man. There was no knock at the door. The maintenance man just opened the door and entered the room. This is the conversation I hear ...
Resident (now for all my lady readers you have to picture the resident having this conversation with a speculum in her hands): "Can I help you?"
Maintenance Man: "They said there was a clogged toilet in the room." (I imagine the maintenance man holding a plunger.)
Resident: "There is no toilet in this room."
Maintenance Man: "Well they gave me this room number."
Resident: "There is no toilet in this room."
Maintenance Man: "Hmm? Okay." (the maintenance man leaves the room)
The resident immediately peeks her head around the corner with the best face ever and says, "I swear that has never happened before. I don't think he had any idea this was an exam room"
Kara and I just busted out laughing.
Okay ... back to the important part ... the babies.
There was no sign of any bleeding and my cervix was firm and closed. All good signs. The resident also did a cervical u/s and an abdominal u/s at the request of my OB. The cervical u/s indicated that my cervix was still measuring at 3cm. The same as last week. And the abdominal u/s indicated no problems with either placenta. A problem with either placenta could cause some bleeding. However ... the abdominal u/s showed that Baby B was now breech! Huh? That had to have just happened because this morning I felt kicks from Baby B up in my ribs. So what caused the more intense contractions ... probably Baby B turning himself breech. The babies already have zero room in the womb and it probably took every ounce of strength for Baby B to turn himself around. And as a result my uterus went crazy. Does it explain the bleeding? No. But it could explain the pain. And like I said earlier in the blog I had been sitting in the hospital realizing that my uterus was the most relaxed it had been in days. Perhaps by turning himself around Baby B suddenly had more room. Who knows?
So I was discharged and sent home. Again. I now have new requirements for calling the OB ... I love how these keep changing as this pregnancy progresses. A small amount of bleeding is okay. A large amount of bleeding is not okay. I need to call the OB if I have a significant amount of bleeding. The braxton hicks contractions are normal. I only need to call the OB if the pain intensifies over a period of time and eventually becomes unbearable.
I am beyond thankful that the boys are doing just fine. They seem to be unaware of all the stress they are sending in my direction. There is something else that has happened to over the last 24 hours ... It is time for me to say good-bye to all I imagined this pregnancy to be. I thought the hard part would be getting pregnant. I never imagined that there could be any greater stress than what Kara and I went through last year to get pregnant. But then I got pregnant and the pregnancy has not exactly been the way I imagined it was going to be. And because of this I have enjoyed very few moments of this pregnancy. All I can think about is getting to June 2012 and hoping with every ounce of my being that I am holding two healthy baby boys in my arms. I look at other pregnant ladies and I am envious. But then I also think that perhaps their pregnancy is not how they imagined it to be too. I need to get to my viability date. I might be able to breath a bit more at that point. But we are still two weeks away from the point when doctors would even try to medically intervene with the babies. It seems like a very long two weeks. I also need to get over this fear I have of the OB thinking I am a crazy lady. I get nervous each time I call the OB because I feel as if I am "that patient" and I feel as if I am bothering the office for no reason. These are my boys. The most precious gift I have ever been given in my life and at the moment the only voice they have is my voice. So I need to just suck it up and realize that I am not going to be that patient that just shows up for monthly OB appointments and then has a problem free delivery at the end. Nope. I have worries. And my worries need to be addressed. And I do feel as if they are addressed immediately each time I express a concern. I just need to realize that I am probably going to have more worries. And that there will probably be more phone calls to the OBs office. And that's okay. There is nothing I can do to change it.
Please keep growing big and strong little ones.
Mary
Sunday, February 12, 2012
21w3d
How Far Along: 21w3d
Milestones: The baby is 10.5 inches long and weighs about 12.2 ounces. He is big enough now that you have probably been feeling his movements.
Total Weight Gain: 15 lbs (I guess I gained some weight this week.)
Maternity Clothes: Not much has changed in this area. I am still in maternity pants. I wear a mix of maternity shirts and non-maternity shirts. I can still fit into my sweatshirts which make me very happy. However, I did have to go through my t-shirt drawer this week and pull out most of my small t-shirts. They have been put away until after the boys make their arrival. Kara and I made a trip to the thrift store this week to get some large t-shirts. I need them to sleep in and eventually I will need them to wear during the day! I might be getting close to moving over to Kara's sweatshirts.
The belly shot for the week...
Sleep: My sleep is not too bad. The cold this week made it very difficult but in terms of pregnancy related problems the only issues I have are the braxton hicks contractions in the middle of the night. They tend to wake me up. I am still using the same pillow arrangement and it seems to work for me. My hips are sore in the morning but I think it is from laying on my side all night long. I cannot wait to sleep on my belly again.
Best Moment of the Week: There were not too many good moments this week. I think between the horrible cold and the braxton hicks contractions I was about ready to throw in the towel. However, the best moment of the week ... I know that the boys are continuing to grow big and strong and that for the time being they are still hanging out inside of my belly. Each morning I wake-up I am grateful for another day with them inside of me. I also enjoy every kick I feel. I feel like I am getting to know them.
Sex: Boys!
Food Cravings: Okay ... I am addicted to hershey kisses. It is bad at the moment. And can probably be a bit of a factor in the weight gain. Otherwise I am still digging orange juice. I am also really enjoying muffins. I love my muffin in the morning (especially blueberry and banana nut).
Food Aversions: None
Symptoms: We have already discussed the braxton hicks contractions in-depth so we will avoid that topic for now. I thought I would mention some of the other changes I have noticed ... My belly has become a road map of blue veins. It is crazy! I know it is because of the increase blood flow through my body and I think I can see them more prominently on my belly because my skin is so light. It is amazing. I think it is freaking Kara out a bit. I am also very close to having an "outie" belly button. That is weird. I would say within the next couple of weeks it will be completely out.
Upcoming Events: We have our MFM appointment on February 21st and then we have scheduled an elective 3d / 4d ultrasound on February 22nd. We have several family members who will be joining us for that appointment and we are really excited to get a really good look at the boys. We should be able to get some really good images of their faces.
Please keep growing little ones and please stay in my belly for a long time!
Mary
Milestones: The baby is 10.5 inches long and weighs about 12.2 ounces. He is big enough now that you have probably been feeling his movements.
Total Weight Gain: 15 lbs (I guess I gained some weight this week.)
Maternity Clothes: Not much has changed in this area. I am still in maternity pants. I wear a mix of maternity shirts and non-maternity shirts. I can still fit into my sweatshirts which make me very happy. However, I did have to go through my t-shirt drawer this week and pull out most of my small t-shirts. They have been put away until after the boys make their arrival. Kara and I made a trip to the thrift store this week to get some large t-shirts. I need them to sleep in and eventually I will need them to wear during the day! I might be getting close to moving over to Kara's sweatshirts.
The belly shot for the week...
Sleep: My sleep is not too bad. The cold this week made it very difficult but in terms of pregnancy related problems the only issues I have are the braxton hicks contractions in the middle of the night. They tend to wake me up. I am still using the same pillow arrangement and it seems to work for me. My hips are sore in the morning but I think it is from laying on my side all night long. I cannot wait to sleep on my belly again.
Best Moment of the Week: There were not too many good moments this week. I think between the horrible cold and the braxton hicks contractions I was about ready to throw in the towel. However, the best moment of the week ... I know that the boys are continuing to grow big and strong and that for the time being they are still hanging out inside of my belly. Each morning I wake-up I am grateful for another day with them inside of me. I also enjoy every kick I feel. I feel like I am getting to know them.
Sex: Boys!
Food Cravings: Okay ... I am addicted to hershey kisses. It is bad at the moment. And can probably be a bit of a factor in the weight gain. Otherwise I am still digging orange juice. I am also really enjoying muffins. I love my muffin in the morning (especially blueberry and banana nut).
Food Aversions: None
Symptoms: We have already discussed the braxton hicks contractions in-depth so we will avoid that topic for now. I thought I would mention some of the other changes I have noticed ... My belly has become a road map of blue veins. It is crazy! I know it is because of the increase blood flow through my body and I think I can see them more prominently on my belly because my skin is so light. It is amazing. I think it is freaking Kara out a bit. I am also very close to having an "outie" belly button. That is weird. I would say within the next couple of weeks it will be completely out.
Upcoming Events: We have our MFM appointment on February 21st and then we have scheduled an elective 3d / 4d ultrasound on February 22nd. We have several family members who will be joining us for that appointment and we are really excited to get a really good look at the boys. We should be able to get some really good images of their faces.
Please keep growing little ones and please stay in my belly for a long time!
Mary
Friday, February 10, 2012
our trip to labor and delivery
I guess it was bound to happen at some point. A trip to labor and delivery.
I had an OB appointment on Tuesday afternoon. It was not a great appointment. The office was super busy and I felt like my concerns regarding the braxton hicks contractions were not taken serious enough. However (and I say that with emphasis) I have also been struggling with a very bad cold all week long and I know that my emotions at that appointment were off the chart. So I am starting to think I may have overreacted a bit after the appointment. Essentially I was told that as long as I could get the braxton hicks contractions to reduce in number by laying down I should not worry about a thing. Okay. Got it. So that takes us to yesterday ...
I always get a horrible cough with any cold. And I was severely coughing on both Wednesday and Thursday. Needless to say when I woke-up on Thursday morning I felt completely awful. I quickly made a decision that work was out for the day and crawled back into bed to try to get as much rest as possible. I was still coughing and started to notice that I could not get the braxton hicks contractions to stop. I just assumed the coughing was irritating my uterus. I finally decided to give the OB a call around 11am. I explained the situation. I explained that I had a bad cold. And I explained that I was probably overreacting. So cue jaw drop when the nurse got back on the phone and told me the OB wanted me to go over to labor and delivery. Huh? I immediately thought ... Now you all get panicked??
I immediately called Kara at work and told her that I was headed to labor and delivery. But that I did not feel a need for both of us to miss work. It is really hard for Kara to leave suddenly for the day. I knew if I really did need for her to come over to the hospital she could be there in only a few minutes. I got dressed (debated on showering and thought nope I do not have energy for that one) and hopped in the car. Much to my amazement the entire experience was not a bad one.
I actually found a parking spot immediately (a rarity at the hospital where I will be delivering) and walked up to the 2nd floor of the hospital. I got all checked in by the receptionist (who was simply amazed that I was 21weeks pregnant with twins by how tiny my belly is ... I made a mental note to send her a thank you note). I was taken back to a triage room and I changed into a hospital gown. My nurse for the afternoon came in to introduce herself and to send me off down the hall for the customary urine sample. I noticed several times during this visit why it is nice to have another person with you at the hospital. For example ... tying a hospital gown or picking something up off the floor when you are hooked up to monitors or getting you something to drink when you are thirsty. Thankfully the nurse helped me with tying the hospital gown so that I didn't show the world my undergarments while walking down the hallway.
We came back to the room and the nurse tried to get both babies on the monitor. The nurse was amazed that both babies were laying vertical in my uterus and both were head down. She indicated that I was on the right track to delivering these babies without a c-section (fingers crossed). The nurse was able to get Baby A on the monitor right away. Our wiggle worm ... Baby B was a whole other story. She tried repeatedly but could not locate Baby B on the monitor for any extended period of time. We picked-up his heart rate for a brief second but then it would go right back to swishing noises indicating that Baby B was moving like crazy. I think it is interesting because Baby B seems to move much more than Baby A but I only feel Baby B kick me every so often.
The nurse then put me on the contraction monitor and left me for some time to see if the monitor would pick up the braxton hicks contractions. I experienced a couple of contractions but when the nurse came back in the room she said the monitor was not picking them up. It turns out the monitor was too lose on my tummy. So we started all over again ... immediately I could see the contractions on the monitor. See ... I'm not crazy! I knew I was having contractions. They monitored me for about two hours. I would get a braxton hicks contraction every 5 or 10 minutes. However, the intensity of the contractions never increased and that is the most important factor in determining whether or not these were bad contractions.
Eventually a medical student came into the room to go over my history and indicated that a resident would be in to examine me. The resident came in about an hour later and indicated that I was most certainly experiencing contractions but that they appeared at the moment to be harmless. I also did not have any signs of an infection (no fever and my urine was awesome). The resident wanted to check my cervix and then do another u/s to measure the length of my cervix. The resident indicated that as long as both check out okay then my official diagnosis is an irritable uterus. Essentially that means I will continue to have these contractions through the remainder of my pregnancy. Great. The resident checked my cervix ... um? not fun ... I cannot imagine the fun that will be when I am 30+ weeks pregnant with twins. All looked good. The u/s also indicated that my cervix was still measuring between 3cm and 3.2cm. The same it was a week ago. It is good to know that after another week of braxton hicks contractions there has not really been a change to the length of my cervix. Because of this the resident was comfortable with sending me home as long as my OB agreed. A quick call to my OB and I was sent on my way. I did talk briefly with the attending physician (a requirement before I am allowed to leave) and he indicated that I now have a good basis for the intensity of the contractions. Therefore, I am not to worry as long as the intensity of the contractions does not increase or move to my back. The frequency of these contractions I must now ignore. It might be normal for me to have one an hour or it might be normal for me to have 15 an hour. I just have a really irritable uterus that gets upset anytime I do anything. I also need to pay attention to the other signs of preterm labor.
So that is where we stand at the moment. I am very glad I went to get checked out at the hospital. It has brought me a tiny bit of reassurance. These boys have already become my world and I just need to get to a point where they have a chance of surviving outside of my body. We need a few more weeks for them to even get a fighting chance. But each morning I wake-up and I am thankful that we have made it another day. Please keep sending all the positive vibes you can muster in our direction.
Mary
I had an OB appointment on Tuesday afternoon. It was not a great appointment. The office was super busy and I felt like my concerns regarding the braxton hicks contractions were not taken serious enough. However (and I say that with emphasis) I have also been struggling with a very bad cold all week long and I know that my emotions at that appointment were off the chart. So I am starting to think I may have overreacted a bit after the appointment. Essentially I was told that as long as I could get the braxton hicks contractions to reduce in number by laying down I should not worry about a thing. Okay. Got it. So that takes us to yesterday ...
I always get a horrible cough with any cold. And I was severely coughing on both Wednesday and Thursday. Needless to say when I woke-up on Thursday morning I felt completely awful. I quickly made a decision that work was out for the day and crawled back into bed to try to get as much rest as possible. I was still coughing and started to notice that I could not get the braxton hicks contractions to stop. I just assumed the coughing was irritating my uterus. I finally decided to give the OB a call around 11am. I explained the situation. I explained that I had a bad cold. And I explained that I was probably overreacting. So cue jaw drop when the nurse got back on the phone and told me the OB wanted me to go over to labor and delivery. Huh? I immediately thought ... Now you all get panicked??
I immediately called Kara at work and told her that I was headed to labor and delivery. But that I did not feel a need for both of us to miss work. It is really hard for Kara to leave suddenly for the day. I knew if I really did need for her to come over to the hospital she could be there in only a few minutes. I got dressed (debated on showering and thought nope I do not have energy for that one) and hopped in the car. Much to my amazement the entire experience was not a bad one.
I actually found a parking spot immediately (a rarity at the hospital where I will be delivering) and walked up to the 2nd floor of the hospital. I got all checked in by the receptionist (who was simply amazed that I was 21weeks pregnant with twins by how tiny my belly is ... I made a mental note to send her a thank you note). I was taken back to a triage room and I changed into a hospital gown. My nurse for the afternoon came in to introduce herself and to send me off down the hall for the customary urine sample. I noticed several times during this visit why it is nice to have another person with you at the hospital. For example ... tying a hospital gown or picking something up off the floor when you are hooked up to monitors or getting you something to drink when you are thirsty. Thankfully the nurse helped me with tying the hospital gown so that I didn't show the world my undergarments while walking down the hallway.
We came back to the room and the nurse tried to get both babies on the monitor. The nurse was amazed that both babies were laying vertical in my uterus and both were head down. She indicated that I was on the right track to delivering these babies without a c-section (fingers crossed). The nurse was able to get Baby A on the monitor right away. Our wiggle worm ... Baby B was a whole other story. She tried repeatedly but could not locate Baby B on the monitor for any extended period of time. We picked-up his heart rate for a brief second but then it would go right back to swishing noises indicating that Baby B was moving like crazy. I think it is interesting because Baby B seems to move much more than Baby A but I only feel Baby B kick me every so often.
The nurse then put me on the contraction monitor and left me for some time to see if the monitor would pick up the braxton hicks contractions. I experienced a couple of contractions but when the nurse came back in the room she said the monitor was not picking them up. It turns out the monitor was too lose on my tummy. So we started all over again ... immediately I could see the contractions on the monitor. See ... I'm not crazy! I knew I was having contractions. They monitored me for about two hours. I would get a braxton hicks contraction every 5 or 10 minutes. However, the intensity of the contractions never increased and that is the most important factor in determining whether or not these were bad contractions.
Eventually a medical student came into the room to go over my history and indicated that a resident would be in to examine me. The resident came in about an hour later and indicated that I was most certainly experiencing contractions but that they appeared at the moment to be harmless. I also did not have any signs of an infection (no fever and my urine was awesome). The resident wanted to check my cervix and then do another u/s to measure the length of my cervix. The resident indicated that as long as both check out okay then my official diagnosis is an irritable uterus. Essentially that means I will continue to have these contractions through the remainder of my pregnancy. Great. The resident checked my cervix ... um? not fun ... I cannot imagine the fun that will be when I am 30+ weeks pregnant with twins. All looked good. The u/s also indicated that my cervix was still measuring between 3cm and 3.2cm. The same it was a week ago. It is good to know that after another week of braxton hicks contractions there has not really been a change to the length of my cervix. Because of this the resident was comfortable with sending me home as long as my OB agreed. A quick call to my OB and I was sent on my way. I did talk briefly with the attending physician (a requirement before I am allowed to leave) and he indicated that I now have a good basis for the intensity of the contractions. Therefore, I am not to worry as long as the intensity of the contractions does not increase or move to my back. The frequency of these contractions I must now ignore. It might be normal for me to have one an hour or it might be normal for me to have 15 an hour. I just have a really irritable uterus that gets upset anytime I do anything. I also need to pay attention to the other signs of preterm labor.
So that is where we stand at the moment. I am very glad I went to get checked out at the hospital. It has brought me a tiny bit of reassurance. These boys have already become my world and I just need to get to a point where they have a chance of surviving outside of my body. We need a few more weeks for them to even get a fighting chance. But each morning I wake-up and I am thankful that we have made it another day. Please keep sending all the positive vibes you can muster in our direction.
Mary
Monday, February 6, 2012
20w4d
I don't have the energy for the weekly survey. I'm just going to type.
I feel like crap. I'm in the middle of a cold. I started to get a sore throat last week and I am now in the all plugged up and can't breath portion of this wonderful experience. I also spent yesterday with braxton hicks contractions every couple of minutes. I kid you not. A normal person would have hauled ass to the hospital. That's what makes this "normal" for me so very difficult. I am freaked out all the time but I have really zero idea when I should be calling the doctor. I then think the stress of the situation causes the contractions to intensify and then I get freaked out even more. Oye. I could get the braxton hicks contractions to slow down to a few an hour when I laid down in bed. The only problem ... I do have to go to work. Unless I am put on bedrest by a doctor I cannot just say ... "Sorry. I have an extremely irritable uterus so I won't be into work today." I'm just stuck in this vicious cycle and I am terrified of giving birth to these babies way too soon. And add a horrible cold on top of all the braxton hicks. Joy. The good news ... I have an OB appointment tomorrow and I am letting it all hangout with the OB. She needs to understand the amount of stress these braxton hicks contractions are giving me. We shall see what happens. I am also nervous because I always get the cough from hell when I get a cold and I need to find out preemptively what I can and cannot take for the cough. I know I can take Robitussin DM but unfortunately that only ever scraps the surface with my coughs. I plan to work only a half day at work today and then I also plan to work a half day tomorrow. I hope some rest in the afternoon will help me out.
I did weigh myself like normal on Saturday morning and I am still up 12.2 lbs. So there was no weight gain this week. Interesting.
So for some good news ... I can feel the babies kick like crazy now. And even better you can feel the babies kick from the outside of my belly. It is truly the most amazing thing in the world. The first time Kara felt the babies kick was awesome. Her face was priceless. We both started to laugh and scream and the dogs started barking from the kitchen. It was funny. I can feel Baby A kick much more often than Baby B. Baby A is up higher in my uterus. Baby A just seems to have more room to stretch out. So I feel his kicks quite a bit. I tend to only feel Baby B when I am laying down in bed. Though yesterday afternoon Baby B gave me a really swift kick to the side. That's my boy!
We bought our first major baby related purchase last week. We are now the proud owners of a 2012 Honda CR-V EX AWD. Yikes! It makes me so nervous and super excited at the same time to think that in under 18 weeks we could have two car seats in the back of that car. The car is really nice and has a lot of safety features that we appreciate for toting two little boys around town. It will also be a great car for long trips. It is also weird to suddenly be a two car household. Kara and I shared a car for so long that it is going to take us some time to get acclimated to our new set-up. We really are glad we were able to share a car for so long. It cut back tremendously on expenses and allowed us to purchase this car without too much of a problem. Now we just have to not crash it anytime soon ... !!!!
Okay. I think that is all for now. Please continue to send positive vibes in our direction. We need to keep these boys in my belly for several more weeks.
Please keep growing little ones.
Mary
I feel like crap. I'm in the middle of a cold. I started to get a sore throat last week and I am now in the all plugged up and can't breath portion of this wonderful experience. I also spent yesterday with braxton hicks contractions every couple of minutes. I kid you not. A normal person would have hauled ass to the hospital. That's what makes this "normal" for me so very difficult. I am freaked out all the time but I have really zero idea when I should be calling the doctor. I then think the stress of the situation causes the contractions to intensify and then I get freaked out even more. Oye. I could get the braxton hicks contractions to slow down to a few an hour when I laid down in bed. The only problem ... I do have to go to work. Unless I am put on bedrest by a doctor I cannot just say ... "Sorry. I have an extremely irritable uterus so I won't be into work today." I'm just stuck in this vicious cycle and I am terrified of giving birth to these babies way too soon. And add a horrible cold on top of all the braxton hicks. Joy. The good news ... I have an OB appointment tomorrow and I am letting it all hangout with the OB. She needs to understand the amount of stress these braxton hicks contractions are giving me. We shall see what happens. I am also nervous because I always get the cough from hell when I get a cold and I need to find out preemptively what I can and cannot take for the cough. I know I can take Robitussin DM but unfortunately that only ever scraps the surface with my coughs. I plan to work only a half day at work today and then I also plan to work a half day tomorrow. I hope some rest in the afternoon will help me out.
I did weigh myself like normal on Saturday morning and I am still up 12.2 lbs. So there was no weight gain this week. Interesting.
So for some good news ... I can feel the babies kick like crazy now. And even better you can feel the babies kick from the outside of my belly. It is truly the most amazing thing in the world. The first time Kara felt the babies kick was awesome. Her face was priceless. We both started to laugh and scream and the dogs started barking from the kitchen. It was funny. I can feel Baby A kick much more often than Baby B. Baby A is up higher in my uterus. Baby A just seems to have more room to stretch out. So I feel his kicks quite a bit. I tend to only feel Baby B when I am laying down in bed. Though yesterday afternoon Baby B gave me a really swift kick to the side. That's my boy!
We bought our first major baby related purchase last week. We are now the proud owners of a 2012 Honda CR-V EX AWD. Yikes! It makes me so nervous and super excited at the same time to think that in under 18 weeks we could have two car seats in the back of that car. The car is really nice and has a lot of safety features that we appreciate for toting two little boys around town. It will also be a great car for long trips. It is also weird to suddenly be a two car household. Kara and I shared a car for so long that it is going to take us some time to get acclimated to our new set-up. We really are glad we were able to share a car for so long. It cut back tremendously on expenses and allowed us to purchase this car without too much of a problem. Now we just have to not crash it anytime soon ... !!!!
Okay. I think that is all for now. Please continue to send positive vibes in our direction. We need to keep these boys in my belly for several more weeks.
Please keep growing little ones.
Mary
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