twobytwo

The crazy blog of a mom of toddler twins and pregnant with a second set of twins. I write it as it is in my life...as I see it or interpret it.

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

28 weeks (well, almost)...

I am less than 3 hours away from 28 weeks, but I am posting now (deal). :)
So, I have had an interesting week, to say the least. Lots of contractions on Sunday, Monday and this morning...decided to call my OB office and check in with them. I received a call back from 'The Nurse.' Yep. That is how she identified herself...and let me tell you, I know why she doesn't give her name. She was mean...and I believe I dealt with her last summer when we were miscarrying and she was just as nasty. She said that she wanted me to go to L&D. Not, "contractions at this stage of the game are normal with twins...slow down a bit and take it easy." Nope. Just sent me off to L&D. Of course, this upset me. Quite a bit, actually. In the midst of phone calls and emails, I lost it. The roller coaster ride of pregnancy is tough, especially when you are a Type A personality like I am and you are dealing with a difficult to pin down normalcy...twins are just different during pregnancy. I cannot explain it, but every medical professional I have discussed this with agrees that there isn't anything textbook about a twin pregnancy.
So, Adam came home, all concerned and off we went to L&D. Of course, I knew that everything was fine. But, 'The Nurse' had already called L&D and told them that I was on my way and I didn't want them to black list me because I didn't show up this time...and when I do show up in true labor, they tell me that I neglected my babies all those weeks ago so they won't see me (I know that this wouldn't happen, but in the emotional minute I was having, this is where a hormonally charged mind will get you, and quickly).
Luckily, the nurse at the hospital was amazing! Absolutely amazing! And, we discussed 'The Nurse' since she sees the same OB as I do. And, she told me everything that I wanted to hear when I called my OB's office...that since this is my 2nd twin pregnancy, contractions are normal at this stage of the game, and since I am measuring term, it is normal to have contractions and I did the right thing by coming in...blah, blah, blah. I felt like they would come in at any minute and give me the run down of their '3 strikes and you are out' policy...one more trip to L&D and I will no longer be allowed to return. But, I have insurance and pay my bills, and I think even if you don't pay your bills, it is still illegal for them to turn you away...
So, that was my day today. Interesting, to say the least. I get to go in and see my OB on Thursday (already had a scheduled appointment with her for Thursday) and I am sure we will have a good laugh about this. Well, perhaps I will still be upset about it, in which case, she will have a good laugh about it.
But, I have learned 3 things today:
1. 'The Nurse' really is not a nice person and should find a different field to be a nurse in...like a place that deals with deaf people so they cannot tell that she is mean by talking to her.
2. My body still confuses the world out of me, but I have to accept that fact.
3. I am tired...and there is still a lot of road in front of me before these babies arrive, so I better get over it!
More later...probably on Thursday or Friday after my laugh-a-thon with my OB! :)

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Happy Earth Day!

Here is to a Happy Earth Day for everyone! Of course, every day should be Earth Day, but if we have to have a big celebration once a year to grab some more attention, so be it! :) Think about what you can do to be more friendly to our Earth. Without it, we won't be here (Mars is just not an option, people, seriously). In our trying times, being Earth friendly is actually very affordable...our family always tries to weigh wants over needs. This is one of the easiest ways to be more Earth friendly, because an increase in 'stuff' only means you have more stuff to get rid of when you go on a cleaning spree (and, if you do this, I hope you think about all of the R's...reduce, reuse and recycle).
Off of the soapbox now...tomorrow marks 27 weeks...yeah! All is going well here. Adam is knee deep in his Masters now...but is scheduled for all of the remaining hours...at least we can see the light at the end of the tunnel!!! I am certain that the next few months will be spent with quiet evenings in our household (Adam working on something and me trying not to distract him), but I am fine with that! We might as well enjoy the quiet before the babies arrive, right? :) Plus, that will give me some more time to get organized and ready for the big arrival of the twins...
More later, I am sure...I will try to post an update tomorrow after my appointment with my nurse, but I might just be outside enjoying the beautiful spring weather that our planet is blessing us with!

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Friday's Appointment (and a sick family)

Augh! We are all sick. This is the pits. The girls spike fevers (well, I think Hadley is finally better) and now Adam and I are battling to get past this yuck. Nothing like being sick and pregnant...I really don't take meds when I am pregnant, so this has been a battle. I feel 10% better today, but had a rough night. I cannot wait to kick this to the curb!
Better news, though. We went to our peri yesterday and everything looked great! It was amazing to see the babies...they are really getting big! Delaney is head down and measuring 1 pound, 15 ounces (45th percentile) and Addison is head down, too (stay that way kids), and measuring 2 pounds even (49th percentile). We could see them swallowing and Delaney was sucking on her fingers. It was pretty cool...the tech was looking at their dividing membrane and it is a diagonal line starting on my left side and moving down to my right side. I guess they are equally sharing space in there! :) And, the good ol cerv still looked good. In fact, my peri came in and started teasing me because everything looked great...so that was a wonderful feeling. He told me that we will have 2 more appointments...one at 30 weeks and one at 34. That is a bit scary! :)
I go to my OB in 2 weeks and have my gestational diabetes screen at that time. Blah. Not fun. I should start seeing her every 2 weeks at that point. This pregnancy is really flying by at this point!
Off to get healthy...

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Another week down...26 total!

Wow! 26 weeks. Depending on what book you read, 1-2 weeks until we enter the 3rd trimester! And the list keeps growing with things we have to do! :) Luckily, I am just crossing off and adding more (it seems that something always finds it way on the list that I didn't think about). We have located, through a great google search, a crib mobile for our nursery...an Eric Carle, Very Hungry Caterpillar crib mobile...it will be perfect! I am ecstatic! Thanks, Carrie! I do plan on working on the nursery this weekend, so if I get it moving in the correct direction, I promise to post pictures. Right now, it just looks like a ton of really organized (or not so organized) piles. It might be another week or two before it truly comes together...well, probably won't be until after our shower, then we can finish up purchasing what we need...
I am feeling great! I am tired now, but I really do believe that it is because I had very little sleep last night since both girls and Adam have come down with a pretty nasty virus. I think I have a touch of it, but my body treats me well when I am pregnant and boosts up my immune system (must be a trade-off for carrying twins).
Adam and I have a nightly event in our house...it is pretty funny. After a full day of eating, we step on the scale before climbing in to bed and check out the weights. We have decided that I have to weigh above him 3 consecutive nights for me to officially weigh more than him...man, he is really holding his own in this competition! I have to give him credit. Monday night, I was up 1/2 a pound, but last night, we were even...I have feeling by next Wednesday, I will be the winner of this competition...I guess I shouldn't be thrilled about it, but Adam is a smaller man, so it feels good to know that even though the top of my uterus is pressing on the bottom of my ribs, we still weigh the same! :) He says it has something to do with his 'guns' but I might have to disagree! :)
I received my 11th progesterone shot today, 11 out of 20! Wow! It is amazing...I hate needles, but pregnancy really prepares you for the epidural! :) It was so great to hear the babies...Delaney's heartbeat was right around 160 and Addison's was right around 140. I could definitely hear the difference today! I am pretty sure I am feeling 4 feet in my ribs, so it will be interesting to see if that is a correct assumption when I go in on Friday.
I am off to tend to my sick kids...they just finished their popsicle treat and we are going to curl up, breathe some fresh air and hopefully kick this virus to the curb!

Sunday, April 13, 2008

25 weeks, 4 days...but who is counting?

Well, I guess I should say, "Who is counting besides me?"
Don't worry, I am doing more than counting. We definitely have been readying our house for our newest arrivals (as you can see in the post below this...I included some pictures of our finished basement). The nursery is empty right now...but the walls and trim are painted, the carpet is cleaned and it is ready to be filled. Today, I am planning on tackling the closet in the nursery (presently used as storage). Then, we can start setting everything up! I am super excited to see the finished product!
I am feeling well for the most part, but if I don't get a particularly good night sleep, I do feel rough the next day (today would be one of those days). But, I really don't have any pressing complaints at this time...phew! I have noticed on days that I 'overdo' things, I have a sharp increase of Braxton Hicks contractions, and while nether one of my doctors have said the words 'bedrest' or 'modified bedrest', I was warned at my last OB appointment to take it easy and not overdo it. I am guessing that I will be verbally restricted this coming Friday at my peri appointment. While I do have a cerclage and that helps to prevent my cervix from shortening without contractions, it doesn't mean that it helps control my body from going into premature labor, a common misconception. I have to be conscientious to take it easy, and I believe that it is a small sacrifice for a large cost (to avoid the NICU would be a win-win situation for me this time around). So, I won't be running any marathons (hee hee) in the next few weeks, but don't worry, I am holding my own around here and not making Adam lose his mind! :)
Adam asked me this morning how old our bed is, hinting at the fact that it isn't the most comfortable, but the last thing we need to be spending money on now is a bed (especially since we have to buy the girls their twin beds before the babies arrive since we need their crib mattresses).
We have a growth scan on the babies this coming Friday and I am anxious to see how they are growing! I am guessing that they will each be around the 2 pound mark. Then, I think we will only have one more growth scan (possibly two). I am planning on asking my peri a list of questions on Friday, so I should have a better understanding with how my treatment is going to pan out as I near the end of the 2nd trimester and prepare for the 3rd trimester! On a side note, I measured my fundal height (from top of pubic bone to top of uterus for those of you that have no clue what the fundus is) and my fundal height at 25 weeks was 33cm. After you hit 20 weeks, your fundal height corresponds with your pregnancy in weeks (in a typical singleton pregnancy), so my belly is probably what it would look like if I was 33 weeks pregnant with one baby (we will never truly know what my body would have done with a singleton pregnancy...we aren't trying this again and ending up with the Brady Bunch on a teacher salary!).
So, that is all right now. We are obviously getting very excited. The girls were born at 34 weeks, 3 days, so we are preparing ourselves for a similar pregnancy even though this one has been quite different up to this point. That means that 9 weeks from this point in pregnancy, we had the girls! Wow! Of course, we would love to carry this pregnancy to 36 weeks, and any day after that is really like great icing on a cake...but I know that my doctor won't let me go past 38 weeks, so that is reassuring!
Hope this finds you all well!

Pictures...

Here are some long promised pictures...
Hadley loving on her babies...
And Gretchen doing the same thing...
The belly at almost 25 weeks...
Gretchen and Hadley on Easter Sunday...
Another picture of the goofy girls on Easter Sunday...Part of our finished basement...And the other part (of course, it looks more lived in now).

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

25 weeks...

Another week down. A few more slash marks on the calendar. A ton of stuff to get ready before these babies decide to make their grand entrance! :)
Seriously, though. All is well here! We had an appointment last week with our OB and all went well. Adam was on break from work, so we decided to take the girls. That was interesting, to say the least! They were really well behaved, so we cannot complain! And, our OB loved seeing them (since she delivered them). I have finally started gaining decent weight for a twin pregnancy, and am right on track with weight as I was when I was pregnant with the girls! Adam is still beating me in the weight department, but I have plans of passing him by when the end of April arrives!
We were able to get the nursery painted while Adam was home...it looks great. We just need to put all of the doors back up (closet and main door) and start assembling it all, but at least the paint is on the walls! :) As soon as we get it put together, I will post pictures...and I still have other pictures to post...perhaps this evening, I will do a picture post of all of our updates!
I had my 25 week progesterone shot today. I am really getting good with needles. Perhaps I will be able to administer my own epidural at the hospital! :) Ok, that was a joke! My nurse is great...really. She helps reassure me and keep me motivated to enjoy my pregnancy, put my feet up whenever I get a minute and help avoid the risk of being put on bedrest. My cervix can still thin out even though I have a cerlcage, so I am taking it easy. I don't want to risk my babies. I just wouldn't be able to live with myself! My blood pressure was amazing...98/68. The babies sounded great...they have been moving all over today. And, my nurse thinks that both babies are semi-transverse right now because my belly looks really wide today. Delaney is head down and we couldn't really figure out how Addison is in there! As long as the are vertex and Addison isn't a dedicated breech, I will be happy. But, there is still plenty of time for them to move around!
That is all for now. I will update later with pictures, but wanted to get a quick post on here. Off to fix lunch...the girls are reading to each other right now...too cute!

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

24 week milestone...

Wow! It felt like an eternity to get to this point...viability (even though the odds are still stacked at this point...it is just nice to know that this pregnancy is moving forward). In 10 weeks and 1 day from now, I went to the hospital with the girls because Hadley's water broke...so we aren't that far off from having our second set of twins...
Everything has been going well. I had a bit of a scare over the weekend...just wasn't feeling right, so we decided to head to Labor and Delivery to be checked out. Everything turned out ok, which was reassuring, but the doctor that I spoke to said that twin pregnancies are unpredictable, that I did the right thing by going in and getting monitored, and that if I feel that way again, to go in and get monitored again. So...I move forward.
I have felt pretty great the last few days. I have been getting things done around the house in preparation for the babies. Our basement is pretty much completed (I will post pictures soon, I promise) and we started on the nursery tomorrow...I can officially call it a nursery since the girls helped clean out all of their toys yesterday and moved them into their room, a donation pile or a send to grandpa's house pile for storage! I would love to get the walls painted tomorrow so we can start setting it up! Can you tell that Adam is on spring break this week? :)
The babies are moving around non-stop and it is a great feeling! I am gaining weight (the only time in my entire life I will be happy about putting on the pounds) and feeling amazing! I am excited about the arrival of our next set of twins, but am also anxious for them to wait at least 12 more weeks. I just hope they listen to me! :)
I will post more later...including pictures of the basement, the girls and the growing belly bump! Hope this finds all of you well!