I haven't wanted to whine

It has been a while since my last post, mainly because I was afraid that all I would do is whine, which is not the intention of my blog, or really what I imagine anyone wants to read.  I will leave it at the fact that being almost 36 weeks pregnant with twins can be pretty uncomfortable.  I won't go into the details, but really, no one tells you that every joint in your body will start to ache.  But we have made it to almost 36 weeks, how amazing!  What a journey to get here, I really didn't know for a long time if it was even possible.

The babies are doing great.  We are now in the throws of birth plans and figuring out how all of this is going to work.  My doctor is going to take out the stitches that he put in so long ago on the 28th of February, just 10 days away!  I think that he is pretty sure I will go into labor then, but it could take a few days.  I feel nervous and apprehensive and scared, but also excited and ready for these girls to make their arrival.  We are continuing to get prepared, organizing the house and getting errands out the way so we don't have to worry about them later.  I think both my husband and I feel a little shocked that the time is finally arriving and wonder about how our lives will change and what we have gotten ourselves into.  Thank goodness we have each other, as well as the support of our families.

I promise that I will do better about keeping things updated and try to get info on here as soon as I can about their arrival.  Look for baby pictures in the next couple of weeks, how exciting!

I am still here!

When I got on my blog this morning I realized it had been a couple of weeks since my last post.  I just don't understand how the time can pass so quickly but feel like it is passing so slowly.

I am still pregnant and now into my 32 week, which is just amazing.  Babies seem to be doing great.  They are moving around a lot and always do really well at my weekly non-stress tests.  Next Monday will be another ultrasound to see how big they are.  I am still on complete bed rest, but the end is getting closer.  I did have to do the three hour glucose test, which was unpleasant, but hopefully everything is ok there.

We have had some sadness.  Last weekend one of our sweet cats got very very sick, had to spend the weekend at the vet, and ended up not making it.  It was really horrible.  This was the cat that had spent the last couple of months glued to my side, keeping me warm and calm as I rested in bed.  She loved to eat watermelon and steal salad.  She drank water exclusively from the faucet or cups.  She was dearly loved and brought both my husband and I a lot of entertainment and joy.  She will be sorely missed.

This weekend was also a year since our twin daughters Wilma and Hannah were born too early.  It was a sad and reflective day.  My mom bought some beautiful daffodils and I did a lot of reflecting and remembering.  My husband and I talked some about how we were feeling and I allowed myself to feel sad when I needed too, and also get distracted with other things when I needed too. 

On a more upbeat note, we are getting much more prepared for these babies arrival.  We now have car seats, a co-sleeper for them to sleep in, bath things, swaddling blankets, and enough newborn clothes that they won't be naked!  We also have packed a bag to take to the hospital.  I am feeling excited and overwhelmed about how things are going to go in the next couple of weeks.  I think because there are a lot of things that I can not control, I have been feeling a little anxious about a few things I do some control over, such as names (we have not decided on any yet), what to put on our registry, and who to use for a pediatrician.

You are missed sweet girl.

A Glimpse Into My Future

I feel really fortunate to have been connected with another mom who lives in my community and has twin girls who are 21 months old.  They came over yesterday and while we talked about all different things concerning twin pregnancy, birth, and infant care, I heard and saw the little girls as they played with my mother and were busy having fun together.  While it was overwhelming to see two busy toddlers, it was also really wonderful.  They were well behaved, cheerful, and their mother seemed upbeat and positive.  Hurray for seeing how great things can be in a couple of years and for being able to connect with another mom of twins.

2010 Ended with a Bang and 2011 Started with Me Still Pregnant!!

Ok, I will admit it, I have been in a funk.  This is getting hard and uncomfortable and I am starting to get whiny.  One friend I talked to said that she guessed it was like running a marathon and I am getting to the point where people "hit the wall," before the end but after they have been going for a while.  I like that because lots of people push through and finish marathons, so I can push through too!

There is really good news though.  It is 2011 and I am still pregnant.  That is amazing.  It was a huge goal for me and we have made it.  I had a doctors appointment on Monday and he is so excited that we are 29 weeks and a few days.  He really feels like no matter when the babies are born there will be a good outcome and we are going to take babies home.  He does really want me to hang on for another month so we can have and keep the babies at the hospital here and not have to go an hour to the level 3 NICU.  I am hoping for that too.  The babies look great and are getting big.  Baby A is 2lbs 13oz and Baby B is 2lbs 14oz.  All the egg nog I drank during the holidays helped I think.

2010 would not leave without making a statement.  I felt like it was taunting me, saying "I know you want me to leave, but I am not done with you yet!"  New Year's Eve brought horrible storms, lots of lightning and thunder, and power outages for hours.  During one of the violent weather cells one of the trees in our front yard got struck by lightning!  I have never been that close to a lightning strike.  The whole house lit up and shook.  Now our tree has a strip all the way down one side where the bark was forced off.

The beginning of 2011 has also brought the realization that I need to get organized and more prepared.  I now have a list of lists I need to make, such as "things to pack for the hospital," "meals to make and freeze," "things needed for sleeping or diapering or feeding, ect" and more.  It is a start!

A December Update

We had a good December, much less eventful than November.  My husband's parents came for a visit at the beginning of the month and helped us so much around the house and in the yard.  They raked and moved more than 50 bags of leaves.  Something fun for me to look forward to for next year :).  It was such a treat to get to see them and spend time with them.  My mom is still here helping me.  I can not say enough how essential my mom has been to the health and well being of these babies, as well as me.  I am incredibly thankful to both her and my dad for the sacrifice and love they are showing us through their actions. 

Reports from the doctor and various tests have been very positive.  I don't have to go back and see him until the 3rd of January, that is in 2011!!!  I feel my goal of having these babies have a 2011 birthday getting ever closer.  At the next appointment I will have another ultrasound to measure the babies and also get my glucose test done.  Fingers crossed I don't have to deal with gestational diabetes too.  I continue to stay on complete bed rest and anticipate that will be the same for a while.  The babies move around a lot.  I can now see their movements on my belly, and usually I can tell which baby it is.  Baby A gets hiccups at least twice a day.

The reality of their arrival is beginning to loom in the near future.  We really could have these babies at any time.  It is scary for me to think about labor and delivery, and then how we will handle everything that will come after that.  We have started to do more research into feeding and sleeping and car seats, and have found many different ways of doing things.  It is pretty overwhelming because we really have no idea what is going to work best.  I guess in the end we will pick what we think will, and then just try it out.  Names are another topic we talk about occasionally, but have not really even narrowed down a list yet.  We are slowly making progress on getting ready for the babies while acknowledging that this is really difficult and complicated.  Hopefully we have a few more weeks to continue working on this.

One of the things that I have been doing while in bed is various crafts.  For Christmas I made my daughters stuffed rabbits out of socks.  They were very easy to make and I am hoping they will be able to go with them while they are in the NICU, if that is the case.  It was really fun to be able to make something specifically for each of them and helped me to feel like I was contributing to the preparation of their arrival.  Here is a picture.

I was also able to have my mom take a picture of my ever expanding self in a rare occasion that I was up and dressed.  Here is 28 weeks with twins.



A quiet, flat thanksgiving, a huge milestone, healthy babies, steroids, and a very tired mamma

Well, my lack of posting, thankfully, is not due to any drama or complications, but the extreme tiredness that seems to have hit me in the last week or so.  It is a physical, spiritual, and mental tiredness that I have heard come with the territory of being completely bed ridden and pregnant with two active little girls. 

We had a great Thanksgiving.  It was quiet and I enjoyed the meal on my side, but it was so tasty.  There is something about the idea of a day completely focused on being thankful that I really like.  It helps to remind me that I need to work on being thankful every day.  And really, I have so much to be thankful for this year.  That weekend my husband went and got me a three foot "table" tree that we now have on a desk in the room I stay in, and with lights and ornaments, it is very festive in here.  I have found that having something living and green to look at really helps.

That Sunday after Thanksgiving marked the beginning of week 24.  It was so great to get to that milestone.  A really huge deal that we celebrated with pizza hut pizza!  It had been what we were focused on and was so crucial to get to.  I definitely have felt some relief for getting past that point, although it is funny, because we were so focused on getting there, that now we are already in week 25, it is strange to have my goals change.  Actually having these babies is becoming more and more real. 

This last week was a surprisingly busy week for me.  We had a doctors appointment on Tuesday and got to see the babies.  It had been about six weeks since we had last had one on them, and they had gotten so much bigger!  They are both weighing right at about one and a half pounds.  They are very active and seem healthy.  That is such a relief.  Then on Wednesday and Thursday I had to go into the hospital for a couple of hours each day to get some testing done.  My doctor also decided to give me steroids, just in case the girls decide they want to make a super early entrance, but we are all really hopeful that they will stay put for a long time.

On Friday my husbands parents made the journey down to spend some time with us and help out.  I am so thankful for the support of our parents.  It has really made this experience easier.  I continue to pass the time with the food network, books, puzzles, crocheting, phone calls, internet searching (it is getting time, I think, to start looking into various baby things we might need), and emailing.

I am now off to a doctors appointment and plan to thoroughly enjoy the fresh air, different views, and chance to wear real clothes.  Have a wonderful week! 

I never thought that...

I would be so thankful for a couple of pieces of nylon thread.  I am still pregnant, and we are closing in on the 24 week milestone.  Only five days till we get there.  At my doctors appointment today ultrasound confirmed that the stitches are holding, the only things, holding the babies in.  But the positive is that they are holding and we are making it.  While the days and nights are long, I hold on to hope and am relying on my faith.  I keep encouraged by the people who are supporting us in incredible ways. 

That is how things are right now.  As the weeks go on I hope that things will just get better and better.