Thursday Doc Appointment

Everyone,

Remember when I said a few posts ago that I had a standing appointment with my perinatologist on Thursday morning? Well, I do. And here's this week's update.

Baby A: His heart is still doing the PAC. Dr. SA says we will probably see it all the way through birth now. We can see it on the ultrasound and during the cord blood flow check. It's becoming just his normal, though. Everything else is doing really well. He's still head down, facing up. And because he's facing up, we get some really cute 4D shots of his face. I will try and get a few up soon. He looks SO SERIOUS in the pictures, with little frowns on his cute little face. The tech said that it looked like he was sleeping. He was also pretty still since he was sleeping. We had to wait around for him to move so they can say they saw him move.

Baby B: He is perfectly fine. He is also now head down! Yay! He was also sleeping during the scan and would not wake up, no matter how much we poked and bounced him. He had his arm flung over his eyes so no pictures of his face. The tech and I spent about 20 minutes chatting while trying to get him up to move. I wasn't worried at all since he is normally my most active guy and he's typically asleep at that time in the morning. I moved, I rolled, I got up and walked and drank water. No such luck. He plays hard, and must sleep hard too. :) When we finally did get him up enough to roll over, he rolled, kicked, punched, and then started in on his brother. Which then got Baby A moving, and my whole belly was shaking. It's so weird to see!

My cervix has shortened considerably. Down from 2.9 to around a 1. And you can see it dilating from the inside (called funneling). This is a big jump in a week. I've been having a lot of contractions and little cramps most days. Dr. SA has restricted my activity. He said that I need to be lying down 80% of my day. I'm not on bed rest, but I do need to take it very very easy. If I have any signs of preterm labor, I'm supposed to call. And if I get 3 or 4 painful contractions, I need to just head into the hospital. I don't really mind this, since it's getting really hard to get around. My belly is getting so big (pictures on the other blog for those interested parties). I've given up trying to do anything with Butterfly but let her pile toys on me on the couch and watch tv. I am 32 weeks now, and only about a month to go!

Safire

Baby Shower

Everyone,

About 2 weeks ago, my church gave me a baby shower. They were so generous, and it was so wonderful to just hang out with my friends and talk baby stuff. They were even sweet enough to make most of the food diabetic friendly so I could have some. What thoughtful sisters I have!

We played a really fun memory game (which I won right out of the box with 4 and 13, my 2 favorite numbers).

And then came the presents! Like I said, everyone was so generous. These boys now don't have to sleep under pink and purple blankets (since that all I had). I have so many blankets and clothes and layette stuff that I am set for the first few months of their lives. Yay! My mom even sent a few things for me to open from aunts and my Nana. I am so excited to see them in some of these cute outfits. Thanks everyone!

I took off all the tags and have spent most of today washing it all (along with all of our clothes). It took 3 loads of wash to go through everything.

I am amazed at how small everything is. I pulled out a few of Butterfly's things that could be used on boys and I remember when she wore them. Was she ever that small? Really? And how can it be that we'll have 2 very small people joining our household in a few weeks? What am I going to do with 2?!

Here's the whole loot. Plus some money for my super awesome stroller. It's expensive, yes, but I'm hoping it's so totally worth it. I am about half way to my goal.

I am feeling closer to being ready. Now to get another car seat, some diapers, and all the clothes folded and put away. Well, that and thank you notes and to go through my mom's group shower presents as well. I am about 2 days away from being 32 weeks, my first goal. Yay!

Next goal, 34 weeks. And then 36, and then delivery. Wish me luck!

Safire

Last Baby-ness

Everyone,

We finally caved and cut Butterfly's hair. I wasn't going to cut it originally. I have no idea why. Mostly because she had cute little curls at the end. But the past few months I have noticed that she is looking a little ragged. Shaggy. Unkempt.

I have been saying we should cut her hair for about a month now. We have just never really gotten around to it. But I feel the impending birth of 2 baby brothers. And who knows when or if I'm going to go on bed rest. I just want everything in place. And having everything in place included getting her hair cut.

She sat as still as a stone through the whole thing. Of course, it helps that we went to the kiddie cut place where they let you watch a movie. They had some Barbie movie which riveted her. She even kept trying to watch around the lady if she got in her line of sight. It took the stylist about 2 minutes to do. She got a sucker for her 'trouble' and a cute little certificate. I also bought her a new bow to match her new Easter dress.

We then went to the shoe store to buy her new Sunday shoes. The shoe store had floor to ceiling mirrors every few feet. She would one to run, stop, look, smile, and then run to the next. And stop, look, and smile. I think she really likes her new hair cut. I must admit, it's very cute. But all that baby look is finally gone. She really is growing up!

Pictures!


Before:

During:

After:I don't think she quite knew what was going on when we finished. I think she really likes it though.

Safire

Dr. SA Visit, 30 weeks 5 days

Everyone,

Yesterday I went to the perinatologist office for my bi-weekly scan of the boys and my cervix. They were actually on time today, and I went in shortly after I arrived. They did the fFN on me first thing, and then looked at my cervix. There's some definite change from last time. I went from 3.6 to a 2.9. Still a good number, but things are starting to get closer to labor. I am about 7 weeks away so really, things should be changing some. If my test comes back positive, then I will be put on bed rest. But Dr. SA said he doesn't anticipate it coming back positive and no news is good news. Well, I haven't heard anything (24 hours later) so I'm assuming I'm in the clear for this test until next time.

Baby A update: He is head down! Yay! Go Baby A! He is also engaged in my pelvis (I'm assuming his head is now stuck between my pelvic bones?) and will probably not move out of this position. His head is also probably the reason my cervix is changing. He was being very cooperative and let us get a 4D ultrasound of his face. His cheeks are cute and chubby already! All parts of his anatomy are doing well (kidneys, stomach, bladder, etc.) and he is measuring about 3 lbs, 9 oz. Which is what a normal singleton baby should be measuring at this point. If he continues to grow, I am on track to have 2 8 lbs + babies. Ugh...I am going to be miserable, aren't I?

(An aside: Last peri visit the boys were measuring about 18% difference, with Baby A being smaller by almost a pound. Looks like he grew!)

They always take their time with his heart just to make sure that the issues he's had before don't come back. But this time, they did. I could hear the instances of PAC right off the bat. I was hoping that was gone for good, but no such luck. Instead of being every 3rd beat, though, it's every 8th or 9th beat, sometimes every 16th beat. Dr. SA wanted to know what I did differently. Honestly, the only thing that has changed has been the gestational diabetes. He said he did see more instances of this with his diabetic patients and wonders if there is a connection. Maybe. Dr. SA said that we know his heart is well formed. We know it can work normally for longer periods of time. He's not too worried, although at this point they may continue into birth and we will be referred back to Dr. Cardio at Children's Hospital downtown when they are born. I am still being asked to stay away from chocolate (not too hard because really, can I have chocolate with GD? I think not...) and all forms of caffeine.

Dr. SA said that I am close enough to my weekly visits to go ahead and make that jump so we can keep a closer eye on Baby A's heart. So now I have a standing appointment with him on Thursday mornings. Hopefully his heart will figure itself out and go back to beating normally.

Updated on Baby B: What an active guy! He kept twisting and turning and kicking and trying to move in on Baby A's space (and his ultrasounds...so many times we had to wait for him to get his bottom/feet/hands/whatever away from his brother to get a clear shot at what we are looking at). And as soon as we started scanning him, he flipped around and refused to do anything but squirm away. He is breech, with instances of frank breech happening more often than not (his feet up by his head).

Baby A is head down, facing my right, and Baby B is head up, facing my left. Kind of like 69.

All of Baby B's anatomy is doing just fine, including his heart. He is a perfectly normal baby with a head FULL of hair. Yes, you read right. We couldn't see his face today, but we saw tons of long hair waving around his head. Now I was very bald when I was born. And I believe Juice was too. But Butterfly had some hair (not much). Maybe he will loose some of this hair before he is born, otherwise I may have to have the nurses give him his first haircut in the nursery. :)

Dr. SA said that I'd have to talk to my OB but this is a suitable position for a vaginal delivery. If Baby A's heart will take the strain. I am still thinking we will have a c-section unless Baby B flips over and stays over. I really do not want to have one vaginally and then have an emergency c-section for Baby B. We will see, though. I still have a few weeks to figure out what is happening.

Oh, and Dr. SA said from here on out, 1 thing a day. Period. That means, if I go to the doctor that day, that's it. No running to the store, no stopping for lunch, etc. I am getting slightly sick of the inside of my house, but I really have no desire to go anywhere. I always end up in pain for several days later and to me, that's just not worth it.

I may actually be starting into nesting because I'm itching to get things all set up for these guys and have their sleeping spaces all set up and ready. Hopefully I can convince Juice to bring everything down from the attic this weekend, and I can wash everything and get it all settled.

Now to convince Butterfly that the bassinet in her room holding all of her blankets is really for the babies to sleep in. Wish me luck with that.

Safire

Food Cravings

Everyone,

My friend Liz asked me what I was craving the most and it has gotten me thinking a lot about food lately. So since I almost wrote a novel answering her, I thought I'd turn it into a regular post. (Went to the peri doc today...update tomorrow when I finish typing it all out.)

My first thought when she asked what I was craving the most was a big, gooey, cheesy burrito with steak and guacamole and black beans. But looking at it, I probably could have this, I just wouldn't be able to eat the whole thing. I suppose it would be okay to only eat a 3rd of it and continue to eat it in small amounts, but I'm getting a little tired of being hungry all the time. I guess with this burrito fantasy, I'm dreaming more about eating A TON rather than eating the burrito.

The next thing that came to mind was of course, ice cream. I really want a double scoop of white chocolate raspberry from Brusters or really anything chocolate from there. Even their vanilla is heavenly, or the one with all the cherries in it. Yum! Sadly, I am still banned from chocolate so this will have to wait till after. I am thinking of going there and getting a small cone of sugar free sorbets that they have just because my numbers have been so excellent I think I could probably handle one.

The last thing I am dreaming about is called "Something Chocolate" at the RedRock Canyon Grill. (If you watch all of their little food pictures, it's the really tall desert dripping chocolate.) This is one of our favorite places to eat, and everyone we take there loves it. Just thinking about the something chocolate makes my mouth water though...all that whipped cream! And the nutmeg! And the ice cream with warm chocolate sauce! And the little crunchy bottom thing! Okay, I have to stop thinking about it now.

My intent is to go to the RedRock Canyon Grill after the twins are born and order one of those something chocolates for myself. Because the chance to eat it all by myself (without Juice or Butterfly eating half, because they do, Butterfly would probably eat one herself if we let her) is part of the treat.

Safire

Doctor Visit, Feeling Crabby

Everyone,

This morning I had a doctor's visit. It's a regular visit, one that happens every 2 weeks. Weird that I'm already at the 2 week visit mark. It's getting close!

My visit today was incredibly low key. I've been having small contractions on and off for the past couple of days but they are nothing really. Just a matter of being big and very pregnant. I met with the new doctor today. She did not do an ultrasound like every single visit I've had. It was strange. She just used the hand held doppler and found both babies' heart beats. She measured me (34 weeks, at 30 weeks) and asked if I had registered at the hospital. That was it. Nothing else. I told her about the contractions. She said to take it easy. I told her that my hips were aching so bad, and my ligaments in my hips and pelvic area feel like they are going to give out sometimes. She says it's normal and to take it easy. Ooookay. Easy. Right.

I'm not sure why but today I am just feeling crabby. I'm a little crabby at my doctor's office. I think they are fine doctors and I think I will be in good hands with them. But I worry that they aren't taking the whole twin thing more seriously. I suppose I don't give them reason to worry most of the time. But I would like maybe something more than take it easy. Although there is nothing else to say. Just being crabby. I go to my peri doctor on Thursday and will know more about the babies and about me.

My blood pressure is normal. I gained one whole pound. My blood sugar levels are beautiful and I'm doing a great job. Okay then. I just need more rest apparently.

Butterfly has a cold and has been super crabby today. Everything makes her cry, which does not improve my mood any. I hate this stage when she asks for something, I give it to her and she just bursts out crying because she doesn't want that anymore! Like at lunch. She wanted a banana. I got her one. I started the peal for her. And suddenly, she did not want it anymore! She wanted MY banana. Okay, fine, we can trade. But Mommy's banana had a bite out of it! The horror! I told her she can eat her banana or we can go to bed. She started sobbing harder. Fine, up to bed we go. As I started getting up, she started into her banana (although not happily). She ate, was happier, and went down for a nap crying because "I have no toys! I have no toys!"

Arg...Mommy needs a break, a good meal, and a good nights sleep.

Safire

Preparing for Twins: Emotionally

Everyone,

I know I have been promising this post for awhile. It takes me awhile to think about this, and mostly when I think about it I become overwhelmed. So I just don't think about it. So this doesn't get written. But I do want to write it out and just bare with me and all the 'holy cow' phrases.

When we first found out we were pregnant, the nurse warned us that it could be multiples. Frankly, we didn't care. We were so thrilled to be pregnant again that the fact that there could be more than one didn't phase us at all. I actually expected Butterfly to be a twin, or the pregnancy after. It just seemed like it was in the cards for us.

At our first ultrasound, both babies showed up right away. I was just happy it wasn't more than 2. The doctor turned to us after the ultrasound showed the 2 little sacs and 2 little heartbeats and said, "You know I have twin boys right? All I can say is GET HELP." Juice and I laughed, Butterfly laughed too because she's a social laughter, and the doctor stopped us. "No, I'm serious. Get help."

I think we were riding the wave of how-cool-are-twins?! The wave, I think, came crashing down when we started letting everyone else know we were having twins. And everyone kept asking if we were prepared. There is a couple at our church that has 12 year old twin boys and she asked me if I had help lined up. Huh, maybe there was something to this whole needing help issue. So I started thinking about it. Enter overwhelming melt down #1.

Who was going to help? Who could help? How could we afford to have this help? Are you sure we need help? And why can't people just drop everything and come and help us!!??

It was short lived. My mom has been a great help with it and working through every one's schedule with me and figuring out what help can come when. In the perfect world.

It wasn't until I got farther along and I realized that my chances of bringing home 2 boys is good that I started feeling, "Oh no...2 babies?!" So I'm going to have 2 babies, 2 little boys to feed, change, take care of. Plus there's Butterfly to think of as well. And then what happens when they get older? 2 toddlers. 2 little boys. 3 sets of homework. 2 teenage boys driving. 2 missionaries.

Yes, I know that people have twins and survive all the time. But the whole package freaks me out. I guess because I just don't know what to expect. It's like having a first baby all over again. Except I do kind of know what to expect because I've had one. And I can't imagine having 2 to deal with. Yes, we'll get 2 times the smiles, 2 times the love, all that great stuff. And if they are anything like Butterfly in her sweet personality, it will be great. But hard.

I was at church yesterday watching all the little kids, wiggle, crawl, squirm around. Having 3 so close together is going to be a challenge. Our days are going to be full of diapers and jam hands. But all young families are filled with the same kind of things. Just thinking of them growing up together makes me smile. (Even if I do feel like my sanity is going to fly out the window at any moment.)

I guess because I'm only about 7 weeks away from having these guys and we're starting to line up our help, that I'm starting to think about about my recovery process with Butterfly and her birth. Since these guys are breech, I am looking at a c-section for me. And what that recovery entails.

My ward was wonderful and threw me an awesome shower this weekend. (More later.) People have been sending us stuff and good wishes. I am feeling more prepared. I think if the babies came early, we could handle it. Except for the help thing. Hopefully things will all work out with help coming and I won't be feeling so overwhelmed.

I know this entry is really disjointed but I can't quite put my feelings into words of how happy and overwhelmed and nervous and excited and scared and happy and anxious I feel.

Safire

Leap Day

Everyone,

I guess it's only once every 4 years that I get to talk about today. So here I am, going to talk about today.

We all got to bed very late last night on account of the class. (More in another post about that.) Juice got up early and went to work as usual. Butterfly slept until about 9am, where she got up and brought me a 'flower' (her blanket) like she does every morning. She really is a very sunny girl in the morning, and loves to just start into playing. I think it's because I insist on her eating before we play that we have our little morning break downs. But this morning she was quite happy to sit and eat her cereal while I tested my blood and made myself a waffle. (Okay, I toasted a frozen one I made about a week ago.) Levels at 76, so I enjoyed my whole wheat waffle and syrup and a big glass of milk. Yum!

Butterfly did not want to watch a show after breakfast (huge, it's her normal routine so I can shower) and so we played with her airplane. And we played with her alphabet puzzle. I got too tired to do much else, and she played for awhile while I browsed on my lapple.

She decided that she wanted to go upstairs to change her diaper, and then she decided she wanted to stay upstairs and watch a show there. Okay, fine. She got dressed, she picked out Dumbo, she sat on my bed and watched it while I showered. Honestly she probably jumped on my bed the whole time but I don't really care. When I emerged from the bathroom, she was enjoying the movie and jumping right in the middle. So I laid down on the edge and watched the movie with her. And then I fell asleep.

Butterfly cried that she couldn't jump anymore (too tired) and so she laid down next to me and finished Dumbo up. Did you know that the Dumbo dvd is on a continuous loop? I didn't. Now I do because I fell asleep again and woke up about half way through the movie. Again. I dozed, answered Butterfly's questions, and painfully sat up. (Apparently too much walking yesterday, my hips hurt!)

Wait, it was 2pm! And she hadn't had lunch and was an hour late for a nap she desperately needed. So I sleepily go downstairs to make her lunch and Juice shows up from work because he is done with work. Juice takes over her lunch prep and she whines/cries all through lunch. She eats, she cries, she laughs, she bawls, she hangs on Juice and won't be consoled.

He takes her up for a nap, and she stalls and cries and won't be consoled. Finally, he leaves her crying in her room and comes down to crash on the couch. I go up because I hear her crying for 'mommy red bird' (which is her name for me right now, Juice is 'daddy blue bird' and she is 'baby red bird'. Very cute.) Anyway, she and I snuggle for a minute, I find her favorite blanket, she gets to listen to her favorite book on CD and she goes down. Both her and Juice sleep for a few hours.

Juice gets up, takes the dog out, and I am just now starting to hear Butterfly stirring in her bed. I've just taken my blood sugar after lunch (100) and had a snack. Now the boys are stretching and moving and letting me know they are okay. Thanks guys!

We will probably have hamburgers for dinner, stay in and do as little as possible. And bed early for everyone. What an exciting Leap Day.

Safire

Just A Quick Update

Everyone,

Butterfly is taking a champion nap today and I will have to go wake her up in about 20 minutes so she can go off to the babysitter's for the evening. We are off to a multiple birth class downtown. Butterfly will spend the evening with the family I used to babysit for. She knows the house, the girls, the routine, etc. We probably won't be home until 10:30pm or so and since it's a school night, I didn't want to ask our regular teenage babysitter. Still, it will be fun for her to have a chance to play with some kids and get out of the house.

I have been watching all those daytime baby shows on tv the past couple of days. Almost every single one of them say something like this: "Can you imagine 2 of them?" or "Twins, one is hard enough!" Having a baby is hard. I'm actually glad we're having twins the second time around because I know a little of what to expect. Although, having one already makes me know what to expect and oh boy...it's going to be...interesting. But that's another post I'm working on.

Gestational diabetes has been going really well actually. In 4 days, I've only had one reading over 120 2 hours after a meal. (That's the cut off my doc gave me.) And I was only at 130 so it wasn't terrible. I'm slowly getting used to sticking my fingers. I'm slowly getting used to eating every 2 hours or so. And I feel like I eat a little bit more than before. Sort of. Let's just say I feel fuller which is good. And I've found that my blood sugar is positively pathetic in the mornings (less than 60), and I can have waffles and syrup every day and it doesn't do anything to my levels the rest of the day. Yum!!!

Alright, time to go pack her bag and get all ready to go. As Butterfly says after she's done talking on the phone, "Okay, talk to you later! Bye!"

Safire

For Your Eating Pleasure

Everyone,

I've had several people ask me for the recipe I talked about last post. So here you go! I got it from my food "bible" or my absolute favorite cookbook, The One Armed Cook. (But the cover is red...I can't figure out why it keeps coming out at blue. Just know, the cover is red!) We eat out of this cookbook at least 2 times a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. We love the ease, the tastiness, the little tips that it's full of. I love it so much I've actually stocked my pantry with all of the staples she suggests so that I can just whip up something quick and easy. If you're looking for a great cookbook, this is it.

This recipe is for a flank steak, but I switched it to a London broil and added a few steps. Here is how I cooked it.

London Broil, adapted from Broiled Flank Steak from "The One Armed Cook"

1/2 cup soy sauce or tamari
1 teaspoon ground ginger (heaping because ginger is good!)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon bottled chopped garlic (I add an extra teaspoon or 3 because we love garlic)
1 tablespoon sesame oil (we have dark sesame oil...so flavorful!)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 London Broil, about 1 lb-2lbs

1. In a large resealable plastic bag, combine all the ingredients except for the London broil, shaking well to mix.
2. Add the meat; turn to coat with marinade. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, turning the bag occasionally. (If you're doing this with a flank steak, it needs to be marinated overnight. London broil is a little more tender and I put this together before church, cooked it when we got home and it was tender and juicy.)
3. When ready to prepare, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Snip a corner of the bag with scissors and drain the marinade into a small saucepan; set aside.
4. In a broiling pan, place the meat and bake for 10 minutes. Turn meat over, bake for another 10 minutes. Turn meat again, back for another 5 minutes until the meat is brown. (Omit this step for the flank steak.)
5. Turn off the oven, turn on the broiler to high and broil for 4 minutes on each side or to desired doneness, watching carefully for flare-ups. (The meat should be around 160 degrees. I actually turned the broiler down to low and did a few more flips just because I can.)
6. Remove pan from oven give it 5 minutes to rest. Slice meat diagonally against the grain. The middle should be pink.
7. Bring the marinade to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve with the steak.

You can double the recipe nicely for a bigger piece of meat. It says it serves 2, but it always is enough for us to eat it for 2 days. And it's really good the next day, or even cold. Let me know if anyone tries it.

Safire

PS- Day 2 with the blood glucose monitor. My levels have been hovering around 90 , which makes me wonder if me cutting out the cereal in my diet has really paid off because I really haven't changed much else. Wish I had known this fact before I failed the test...

Another Cute Butterfly Saying

Everyone,

Last night we had London Broil for dinner. When I was growing up, it was my favorite Sunday dinner. Juice asked me why, and I couldn't tell him. It was just so good. I found an awesome recipe for it (well, it's a recipe for flank steak and I just switched meats) and it was really tasty. Butterfly loved the vegetables and had a small nibble of the meat. When we were done, Juice asked her if she'd like a bite of his meat. She said yes!

She took the meat. I told her that was good! She looked at me with a face and said,

"Except it isn't."

She cracks me up!

Safire

Happy Birthday yesterday to my Dad! Hope you're getting over your jet lag from Japan.

Guess What This Means

Everyone,

So who knows what this is? And can anyone guess what news I got at my doctor's appointment yesterday?

Yeah, I have gestational diabetes. NOT COOL. Eating for me is so horrible during pregnancy anyway that this is a real blow. I hate the diet. It's stressing me out. I feel like it's just one more thing on top of not sleeping, feeling huge, and trying to deal with my wreck of a house and a very active 2.5 year old. So not only do I not sleep, I don't eat really either.

My doctor's office gave me a meal plan set at 2200 calories a day. I kept asking the girl (whom I thought was a diet person but now I think is just an RN) if this was okay for twins. I always heard I needed to eat more than a singleton pregnancy. I have only gained 27 lbs so far (which is great, I think) and she kept telling me they didn't want me to gain much more than that. Aren't I supposed to gain 40-50 lbs with twins? Or am I just getting my information from bad sources?

Anyway, I now have to test my blood sugar 4 times a day (before breakfast, 2 hours after each meal). The box for the meter says, "Now with less pain!" Fills me with a great desire to use it, let me tell you. (I got a bad meter from the pharmacy...the company is sending me a new one hopefully tomorrow so I can start testing. Luckily my insurance covers it.)

Other than this stupid life changing news, everything else is great. My blood pressure is very low (110 over 60) and I am measuring around 32 weeks (they must have a better tape measure than mine at home because I thought I was measuring around 40 weeks). I only gained 2 lbs these 3 weeks. Both babies look fabulous and Baby B has flipped around so he is no longer breech. I go back and see them in 2 weeks, or if my blood sugar is consistently high. I feel like calling the office and begging them just to put me on insulin because I really don't think I can handle this diet.

Because no ice cream, no pancakes (well, no syrup and honestly, who wants a pancake plain?), no guac, so no Mexican food like I like it...it's just so depressing.

29 weeks and the weeks can't fly by fast enough.

Safire

PS- Thanks for all the input about the slowness of the blog. I took away some things and hopefully that will continue to help. :) And it's nice to know that I have readers! :)

Slowly...slowly

Everyone,

Is anyone else having a really hard time loading this page? My mom is complaining about it to me, and it does take a lot longer than it used to to load up the content. I've checked blogger, but it doesn't seem to be a known issue (that I can find). Maybe it will go away on it's own. Maybe.

Sleep is bad again. Feeling drained and droopy. Only want to eat Mexican food and pancakes. Yes, at the same time.

Butterfly just got a sandwich out of the fridge I had made for her earlier and she said, "How amazing! A sandwich!" So cute.

Safire

Half a Day

Everyone,

Since I am down to one thing a day, I thought I’d tell you about my one thing today: my 3 hour gestational diabetes test. Typically with twins, they test you early in your pregnancy for gestational diabetes. I think they tested me first around 18 weeks. And I failed the one hour one. So I went back for the three hour test. Passed! Yay! Sadly, at my last appointment, I was told that I have to take it again when everyone gets tested, between 26-28 weeks in pregnancy. So since I am 28 weeks today, I am here in the lab being tested. Here’s a run down.

8 am- Leave the house with plenty of time to get to my 8:30am appointment. Drive leisurly the 10 minutes it takes to get to the hospital lab (which is the only lab open on Saturdays) and remark to myself that it took less time to get here than to get to my perinatologist appointment on Thursday. (Their office is also by the hospital.)

8:10 am- Arrive at lab. Decide to hang out in car until my appointment time because it’s a lot more comfortable than the chairs in the lab. Rock out to a few songs I have not heard in a long time. Think back on my 14th birthday when my friends and I watched Bennie and Joon and listened to the song during the credits at least 10 times. Wonder where Melissa is right now.

8:20am- Almost slip and fall on the ice/oil in the parking lot. Be very thankful that I am right next to my car and was able to catch myself.

8:22am- Open door to lab and be very thankful that I made an appointment a week before. Every single seat is taken in the waiting room. I sign in, let the ladies at the front desk know I am here for the 3 hour test and I have an appointment. They have me sit down for a few minutes. A nice guy gets up and gives me his seat. There is one good thing about being visably pregnant.

8:33am- Called up to the front. They take my doctor’s orders, send me back with a phlebotomist (vampire) and she direct me to the chair. I try to shut the little arm on the chair to rest my arms on but find out my belly is too big. Sigh…

8:35am- She draws my blood. We have some small talk about kids, and she is amazed I am having twins. She takes 4 viles of blood and gives me a plastic bottle full of bright orange glucose. Yum. At least it’s cold and since I have to do this fasting, I chug it down. I am thirsty!

8:41am- I let the gal at the front know I have drunk my juice and she marks the time. In an hour, I will go back and get another draw.

8:42am- I realize the book I brought is the 5th book in the series, not the 6th. I finished the 5th days ago. Oops. I pull out my other book I am reading (Darcy’s Story by Janet Aylmer, it’s okay) and read it for a few minutes.

8:51am- A small boy with a shock of brown hair comes in with his parents. He announces to the room, “My mommy’s going to get a new baby!” Everyone chuckles and the lady next to me says, “If only he knew what that meant!” Everyone chuckles again. I am entranced with this little boy and start to imagine me with 2 of them. It’s a nice thought.

9:15am- I get bored with my book. I pull out my laptop (or my lapple as I like to call it) and check to see that there are no internet connections in the area. Sigh. Open word and start this document.

9:31am- Listen to the family across the waiting room and the 3 year old is whining to get her dad to go get a drink of water with her. Dad is sitting there with his eyes closed trying his hardest to ignore her. Mom snaps, “What is the problem?” and 3 year old goes to whine at her. She asks older sister (about 7) to take her to the water cooler to get a drink. Older sister does not want to go, she is doing her math. Mom starts to whine at older sister to help her out and just take her to get water. Older sister flatly refuses. Dad finally relents and takes whiny 3 year old to water cooler. Mom says, “Dad of the year.” I wonder why mom couldn’t have gotten up to get her water.

9:34am- Getting very uncomfortable sitting in these chairs. Baby B’s head is right in my ribs and it is so uncomfortable. He will not move away and I am starting to get queasy from the glucose orange drink.

9:40am- Blood draw #2. Listen to now screaming 3 year old in the next room. Feel sorry for her. Butterfly would not like to have her blood drawn. This draw for me hurts a little more than the last one. My skin must be getting sensitive. Next draw is at 10:40am. I decide to watch Pride and Prejudice to pass the time.

10:45am- Blood draw #3. A new vampire this time, and a different arm. Doesn’t hurt as much. Back to the movie! Poor Mr. Collins is just proposing to Elizabeth. He’s so odious!

11:40am- Blood draw #4 and the end. Finally! Another new vampire. She uses the arm that hurts, though. Lucky it’s just a small vile. I gathered up my things a few minutes before this.

11:43am- Done with blood draws! I sit down next to the water cooler and drink at least 6 very tiny cones of water. I am so thirsty! I told Juice I would be home around 1pm so I decide to go and get some lunch and the local sandwich place.

12:35pm- I am done with my soup in a bread bowl and my 2 water bottles full of water. I have also finished the movie. It makes me smile every time I think about it. And now the battery on my lapple is dying so I will go.

Safire

Another Doctor Visit, Another Update

Everyone,

Today was my regular visit with my perinatologist. Dr. SA was out of town today so I saw another doctor in the practice. Dr. Other we'll call him. He was nice, but I missed Dr. SA. I sat for almost an hour in the waiting room waiting for my appointment. I don't like that. I think that if I'm going to do my best to be on time, they should as well. Maybe they had an emergency or something. Either way, by the time I got back in the exam room, I was tired and ready to go home.

But, first things first. They checked my cervix and all is well. No signs of preterm labor there! Yay! It's always my biggest fear that things are changing and I don't know it. Not to worry, I'm doing "exceptionally well".

Baby A is breech with his little feet tucked under his cute tushie. It's called complete breech. No wonder I feel his kicks all over my lower abdomen. He is on my left side, facing his brother today. Baby B is also breech. But he is in position called frank breech because he is folded in half. It's really interesting to see the ultrasound of his head, and then his feet like rabbit ears on top of his skull.

Dr. Other said at this point, if I were to go into labor it would be a c-section. However, I still have time and I guess babies tend to turn on their own (or so I've been reading while trying to find pictures of breech positions. You can google it as well as I can.) and sometimes turn as late as 36 weeks. Now, it's a little different with twins, but we shall see.

The heart arrhythmia is gone, so that is good. Baby A is 2 lbs, 7 oz and Baby B is 2 lbs 12 oz. That's a big difference. An 18% difference. Now, he's not too worried about it, but it's worth watching. He said that typically he does see Baby B being bigger because there is more room at the top of the uterus than there is below. Baby A is growing fine. The only time they would be worried about it is if Baby A stops growing or there's a bigger than 25% difference. He said he really only sees Baby B being smaller if Baby B is a girl. And since we are having boys, Baby B gets to be a tank (his word, not mine).

Fluid looks good, hearts are steady and healthy, and Baby A had the hiccups again. They both kept putting their hands in front of their faces when we tried to look at them. But they were hard to see anyway since they are facing each other. I can just see them plotting to do something mischievous.

Having boys is going to be so much fun! Right? Right?!

Safire

PS- I won a print from Illustrator Mommy! It's an 8x10 of the Mayflower. And since we are doing the boys' nursery in sail boats, this will be perfect!! I'm so excited!

A Dream

Everyone,

With Butterfly, I had horrific vivid nightmares at least once a week. Mostly they involved Juice dying. At the beginning of this pregnancy, I had some vivid dreams, but not as many as I had with Butterfly. And most were not of Juice dying.

Last night, I had a very vivid dream. I was on a jungle safari and hearing the animals growl and howl and do all the animal sounds that I imagine would happen at night in the jungle. They were getting closer and I was getting increasingly worried. I was in a tent and every time I would hear a growl, I would sit up in my sleeping bag. The last one was so loud and right beside my head that I sat up shaking.

Literally, I sat myself up in bed shaking because the noise was so real. It was morning in my own bedroom and Juice and Butterfly were still sleeping. I was not in the jungle. But the sound happened again. It was my stomach! It had been growling because I can't ever fill it enough. It was nice to have breakfast on my own today, but I wish my body would not wake me up so early to eat.

Speaking of eating, Juice and I talk a lot about Butterfly and her inheritance of Jeff's 'third leg'. That girl can put away some food! Last night we went to the pancake place for free pancakes and she ate 2 whole ones. I ate 2 and was full. She was still going strong on the third but we ran out of juice and she declared herself done.

Anyway, back to the leg. She has started saying things like, "My leg is hungry. My leg is empty. My leg needs to be fulled up. My leg wants to eat an elephant. (It's a line from a book.)" Too cute!

Safire

89 Days Till Due Date

Everyone,

It seems weird to me that I am now in the 80's with my days until my due date. That means I only have about 9 weeks left (or so). It still doesn't seem real to me that we will have babies in the near future. I am starting to think about all the things we have to do to prepare for these guys, but thinking is as far as I'm going. Want to hear? No? Too bad. :)

Clean out dresser. I have a nice big dresser I bought for Butterfly that I could fill with all of her stuff when she was tiny. Now, I only use about 4 of the 6 drawers. I think if I clean out one more drawer I can have 3 drawers for Butterfly, and 3 for the twins.

Clean out beside my bed. There's a fan, a bunch of Butterfly books, and other assorted junk right next to my bed. I'd like to clean it out so we can actually fit the bassinet there for when they are little.

Wash clothes. I have been getting a few clothes for these guys from my mom, friends, and people at church. I'd like to just wash them all and put them away so when they come, they actually have something to wear. My mom's of multiples group has a premie loaner closet so if I need some tiny tiny clothes, I can just borrow them. I will probably wait to wash everything until after my shower. That way, things can just be washed all at once. I'm going to need another mesh laundry bag for all the tiny baby socks since the one I have is totally thrashed.

Talk to Juice's family about help. Juice has 2 nieces who are 15 and 17 years old. We want one of them to come and help us over the summer and live with us. Either girl would be fine, it's just a matter of who really wants to give up her entire summer and friends for us and our tiny house and 2 screaming babies and a 3 year old. Since my SIL is also having twins, the other can go get 2 screaming baby experience at her house. But like she said, it's not as glamorous as coming here. We've talked to their parents, both of the girls, and have created quite a stir in their family. Turns out each one is giving reasons why they other should stay behind. Hopefully we'll be able to decide that sometime this week.

That's all that really buzzing around in my head today. That and the fact that I pulled a muscle in my back last night sleeping (how, I have no idea!) and now my back all the way down to my calves is cramping. Good times, good times. Looks like I need to start up my yoga again.

Safire

Take Some Time

Everyone,

Juice and I have been staying up late the past couple of nights laughing so hard we are crying. And why is that? We've been reading through the comments of Pioneer Woman's latest give away. She have everyone post their most embarrassing moments and randomly picked a person to win a Wii.

Go here to get a good laugh. Juice's favorite is the guy with the glue and the toilet seat...mine is the lady who knocked out her GYN. Enjoy!

Safire

Preparing for Twins, medically

Everyone,

Remember when I posted this? Well, I had an idea about doing a whole series about preparing for twins from my prospective. Each pregnancy is different, and my pregnancy will be different than my sil's. She is having mo/mo twins (one amniotic sack, one placenta) and I am having di/di twins (2 amniotic sacks, 2 placentas). Her babies will be born at 32 weeks, and mine could technically go till 38 weeks. (Ugh, can you imagine how big I am going to be?!) And her doctors have different ideas of what to do than mine do. But I thought it would be fun to give an overview of what I am doing medically right now.

When we first got pregnant, we were still working with our RE (reproductive endocrinologist) but after the first ultrasound when we found out we were having twins at 7 weeks, they graduated us to my regular OB. I had my first OB appointment around 10 weeks so my mom could be there and see the ultrasound of the little guys. The OB put me on a regular pregnancy schedule for the first little bit, with me going every month.

I did not got every month. I went pretty much every 2 weeks. I don't think that going every month is a good idea with twins but that is just me. I had 'emergency' appointments for things like Ed (remember that horrible cough that would not go away?!), some spotting, and follow up visits to the ER. Yes, I went to the ER one night for spotting. Things worked themselves out and here we are. :)

Going every 2 weeks was a big help for me emotionally and helped me to relax. Especially after I had that very late miscarriage, I was always nervous that something would happen to the babies. Having the doctor's check them and seeing them grow every 2 weeks really helped me to not stress as much. I think things also calmed down for me once I started feeling them move.

At 19 weeks, my OB referred me to a specialist for an ultrasound. This is where we discovered they were boys and we met Dr. SA. I really like their office. I was surprised that I would be seeing them as well as my OB but now I am so glad I am. I started off every 3 weeks with them, and now I'm down to every 2 weeks. At these visits, we do a growth scan of the boys and make sure they are growing how they should and one is not getting bigger than the other. They also check their hearts, kidneys, stomachs, etc. It's an hour visit every time I go. They also check my cervical length and have started doing a fetal fibronectin test to see if I am going to go into preterm labor in 2 weeks. I like to think of my peri as the boys' doctor, and my OB as my doctor. Dr. SA does not deliver babies or I would move all of my care to him.

Now that I am 27 weeks (can you believe it! Only about 10 weeks left!) my OB has got me on an every 2 week visit for a month or so, and then weekly as we get closer to delivery. (Pretty standard for a regular pregnancy.) Honestly the only difference I see at the OB this time is that I get a quick ultrasound every time I go in.

My insurance has a nurse that calls me once a month to check up on my progress. They also approved an in home nurse that came to talk to me about pre-term labor. She showed me a little video about the signs and symptoms, and showed me how to feel my belly for contractions. These are all things I already knew, but knowledge is power so it's always good to be reminded. This company that sent the nurse also has assigned me a nurse to call me every Tuesday morning. We spend a few minutes on the phone just talking about my progress and how I'm feeling. They also report back to my doctors and my insurance. It's like a delicate dance between all these parties and me and the boys.

Talking to some of the moms in my online twin group, they also have this phone nurse service but are using more of their services. They have at home contraction monitors that they use for 2 hours a day, medication pumps, and bed rest resources. I hope to not have to use them, but it's nice to know that they are there for my use if I need it.

So at least once I week, I talk to someone medically. In ways, I am glad that I have so much help from my insurance and my doctors. We are all focused on having 2 healthy boys in about 10 weeks and it's nice to work towards a common goal. They all agree that I am doing exceptionally well for twins, which can only further me towards having the boys be born healthy and full term and come home with me from the hospital.

Next up, preparing for twins- emotionally.

Phew, this is a long entry. If you've gotten this far, I'll share a tip with you. IHOP is having national pancake day next Tuesday the 12th. They are giving out free pancakes all day! Will you be there? We will!

Safire

Feeling Miserable

Everyone,

I have learned my limit. Yesterday, we went to the mall with Vinny and his mom and let the kids run around the little play area like banshees. Butterfly had so much fun. She would run run run, lay down panting, and then get up and run again when she was rested. She so needed a chance to get out and just be a kid. We also had lunch and traveled to the fabric store to pick up some fabric we need for a service project our church is doing.

Boy did I underestimate how long it would take the sweet old women at the fabric store to cut 4 yards of fabric for us. Vinny and Butterfly were running in circles laughing loudly, and Lala (Vinny's mom) is about a month away from having her baby and I am feeling crampy and snappish. There were about 3 other women in line behind us and I could see them watching our kids with disapproving looks on their faces. Look all you want people. They weren't tearing things off the shelves, they weren't running into things, they were just running in a very small circle laughing.

By the time I got what I needed, stood at the cashier behind a super old lady who bought a ton of scraps and had to get the price on every single one, I was done. I paid, walked about 2 steps and sat down on the floor to wait for Lala and Vinny, who were 2 people behind me in line. Butterfly thought sitting on the floor was lots of fun and I managed to keep her down there with me until they were ready to go.

Luckily, Butterfly went strait to sleep for a nap, and I was able to get about 20 minutes myself. But today, I am feeling very sore and still very snappish. Apparently 2 stores is too much. (No contractions, thank goodness, and the babies are moving a lot.) I am down to doing one thing every other day, or even every 2 days because it takes me awhile to recover from doing anything but sitting on the couch. I am feeling huge and uncomfortable. I am measuring around full term, and still have about 10 weeks to go.

All I want to do is curl up on the couch, not have Butterfly climb all over me (haha) and eat ice cream from this place. It really is a shame they don't deliver.

Safire

Poor Daddy

Everyone,

Juice is sitting here reading over my shoulder and I asked him what I should post about today. He said I should post about how he had to stay at work. Poor Daddy. All day at work with adults and the chance to eat all of his own food.

He laughs and says he was locked in a dark room, had too much conversation with other people, and had too many meetings. He did get to eat all of his lunch though. (He says with a smirk.) (And he's laughing at me for my lack of proper punctuation. I ask, who is the English major here?!)

I had to wake Butterfly up from a nap today to actually go and pick him up from work. When I asked her if she wanted to go pick up Daddy, she said, "No! I don't want Daddy! He has to stay at work ALL NIGHT LONG!" and flung herself back on her bed. I had to call him up and tell him that we would not be picking him up for a while. I had to convince Butterfly that we liked having Daddy home in the evenings. Especially Mommy. Because then Mommy can sit on the couch with her lap top and watch them play. It's very nice for Mommy. :)

(But I'm not letting him read over my shoulder anymore. He keeps picking on my word usage, spelling and grammar!)

Oh, and we did finally go get him. Thanks to some dried apricots that made Butterfly stop crying in a pinch. Gotta love those things.

Safire

Butterfly

Everyone,

Butterfly was exceptionally cute today. (Well, the time I saw her since I spent half the day at the store helping my friend finish her registry.) She came up to me today and said, "We're friends, right?"

"Right!"

"And I like you."

"I like you too, sweetheart."

"And Daddy. He is the bestest Daddy ever."

"Yes, he is your bestest Daddy. We love Daddy, don't we?"

"I do. But you make him do things."

"So true, Baby Girl. So true."

Apparently doing things is not high on her list of fun things. I don't know why because Juice includes her in pretty much everything he does and makes it fun for her. Including measuring the upstairs so he can continue to build our house on auto CAD. Let me tell you, not something that I imagined a 2 year old enjoying doing.

For nights now she has been begging to have her pillow and blanket situated just like "the girl." We could not figure out who "the girl" was. We let her arrange it how she wanted to because she would sleep. And I have to admit we are more interested in getting her to sleep than figuring out who "the girl" was. And then, it dawned on us this morning. She has fallen in love with a book about Monsters Inc. and there's a picture in there about Boo sleeping with her pillow just so. Ahhh...insights into a 2 year old's mind.

She is one of the cutest, sweetest little girls I have ever met. Yesterday she wanted to play doctor and had to look in my ears and eyes and count my teeth and measure my belly. It was just so sweet to see her pretending to be something that she has seen a lot of.

Safire

Twins, oh twins!

Everyone,

My sister in law is pregnant and due about 10 weeks behind me. I was excited that she was expecting again, because we were due within a week of each other with Butterfly and her son Strong Bear. (Don't you just love internet names? :) ) They are 8 days apart and it's so much fun to hear what he's doing and what Butterfly is doing and all that jazz. Grandpa loved to say that these were his twin grandchildren born 3000 miles apart.

Well, then, we are having twins. So Grandpa got his twin grandchildren after all. And then some! Turns out my sister in law is ALSO having twins, identical twins.

I am really excited that Butterfly has a few cousins her age to play with when we visit family. And now I am excited that my twins will have twin cousins to play with that will be the same age. And probably the same year in school and everything.

Check out her brand new blog. It's just so cool!

Safire

Another Ultrasound...again

Everyone,

Meet Baby A on the left, and Baby B below him. I had my follow up perinatologist appointment this afternoon for the baby's PAC issue. There is no issue anymore since there is no PAC. Amazing! The doctor wasn't convinced that I had not done anything except not eat chocolate this week. And really, I don't eat a lot of chocolate in the first place. I attribute no more PAC to a lot of prayers sent our way.

Just because it's gone, doesn't mean it won't come back. So they are just going to keep an eye out for it and be happy that it is gone for now.



Baby A flipped back around and is back to being breech. His head is near my right hip, and bottom is sitting right on my cervix. His feet are floating somewhere up towards the middle of my belly. Baby B is head up and jammed in my ribs, with his feet on A's feet. Makes me very uncomfortable. Especially that head in my rib part.

The fact that A is jammed down in my hips which is why the picture of him is not great. I don't see Butterfly in him at all. His mouth is a lot wider than her, and he looks to have Juice's small forehead. Who knows though since the picture is not great.

B was a picture boy today and I must have 4 or 5 great ones of him. I like this one with his thumb by his face because just after she froze the frame, A kicked him. His hand is on the way up to protect his head. You can see the membrane separating them on the left, that bright line next to his head. I see a lot of Butterfly in him, although his mouth is a lot wider than hers.

Okay, the ultrasounds are amazing in the detail they can show you. I am starting to really get excited to meet these guys in a few short weeks! (I am 25, almost 26 weeks. My little ticker says only 100 days to go. Go us!) I am almost to the point of viability (28 weeks) and that was my next goal. After that point, 32 weeks. And then, 36 weeks. I bet it will go fast (ish).

Next visit in 2 weeks, next OB visit in 3. And since my Dad is going to Japan for the next 3 weeks and we won't be able to chat, I will try very hard and update my blog more often for him. Check back frequently.

Safire

Hello Insomnia

Everyone,

Sooo...close to midnight here. My family is all sleeping away peacefully. Including Soot who I can hear is snoring in her crate in the next room. And why, why does sleep have to be so elusive to me?! When I was pregnant with Butterfly, I could sleep at the drop of a hat. And I did. I slept so much and so often I wondered what I would do when she was born. But she slept a lot too, and those newborn days of hers are hazy and pajama ridden.

There are lots of pajamas in this pregnancy too, but probably because I remember them more. I'm awake a lot more. And I never seem to be able to sleep at night. During the day, no problem! Butterfly and I took a 4 hour nap today. This could be encouraging the insomnia at night.

We all had a very early day today. We had dentist appointments starting at 8am. Butterfly typically doesn't get up until about 9am these days, and I sleep as long as she does. But today, I was up at 6am so I could get ready before facing "the beast" as we call it. She is NOT a happy camper when she gets up. Okay, she's not a happy camper for me. She loves Daddy. Anyway, back to teeth. We all had a nice cleaning and no cavities. Yay!

I have been tagged for 2 different memes. I'll do one tonight since the other needs me to take pictures and my internet is out on the computer my camera is hooked to. So, meme #1, from jw4mkc.

Rules:

• Link to the person that tagged you.
• Post the rules on your blog.
• Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
• Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
• Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

My 6 things...again. (I'm pretty sure I've already done this so I'm going to do a pregnancy version.)

1- I drool. A lot. It wakes me up at night with how much I drool. Juice will not let me sleep on his pillow anymore and I had to give my word of honor that I wouldn't sleep there when he wasn't around to police me. Turns out, this is a normal thing of pregnancy because of all the heartburn.
2- My belly button is so close to poking out. It never did this with Butterfly's pregnancy because I have a crag of a belly button. But this time around, I can see my innie becoming an outie and it's strange. (Also strange, the stupid skin tag I have in the middle of my belly button. I want it removed it bugs me so much!)
3- I have been denied chocolate and now that is all I want to eat. I went to the store the other day and they had all their valentines stuff out and I was sad I couldn't eat anything. Even the smell was driving me crazy.
4- With Butterfly's pregnancy I had food aversion like you would not believe. Now, I have food cravings. I eat so much cereal and string cheese these days. I also like fresh food, no leftovers please!
5- I take 5 pills every day. 3 prenatal vitamins (that's the dosage on the bottle...it's supposed to be conveinant to take at meal times but I never rememeber), one heartburn supresor so I might actually be able to lay down to sleep, and a Flintstone chewable. Man those things taste so good. They are my reward for actually remember to take all my pills every day and probably the only reason I do.
6- I forget. I forget things like words of things (cabanet, mail being my favorite), I forget people's birthdays. I forget to pay bills or I forget that I have already paid a bill and pay it twice. I never forget to eat, though. Or anything important with Butterfly. But everything else, so sorry if I've forgotten.

There you go. I was resting my arm on my belly thinking of something to write and I got a definite hand or foot swipe, along with a very hard push against my arm. It was slowly lifting my arm in the air and then suddenly went away when I felt the other baby move. It's fun to be pregnant with twins. :)

Safire

PS- The spell check function seems to be on the fritz. Sorry about the misspellings.

PPS- No tags for anyone...if you wish to play along, then do so! :)

Another Ultrasound and News

Everyone,

Every 3 weeks I go to my perinatologist for an in depth ultrasound of these boys. Think of an anatomy scan that everyone gets around 20 weeks, I get that every 3 weeks. They just want to check and make sure they are growing well, there are no problems and things continue to develop properly. It's really fun to see them, and to see their little stomachs and brains and such. Things I will never be able to see after they are born. :) I watch, I ask a few questions, and try not to throw up when the tech gets to Baby B who is on my stomach.

Baby A is finally head down, and Baby B is head up. So they are basically head to feet, B on my left and A on my right. I feel like B is jammed in my ribs and lungs and A is floating down between my hips. They are both about a pound and a half, and their heads are about the same size. This is all good things in the twin world, showing that my body is doing a good job at feeding them both and is not favoring one over the other. Good job. :) Both placentas look very good and healthy, and they both have great blood flow, fluid, leg bones, etc.

But Baby A, the one on the bottom, was scanned a lot more than B yesterday. The tech spent a lot of time looking at his heart yesterday, and I noticed her measuring a pocket of fluid next to it. I thought that it was probably nothing and just something they were going to keep an eye on. Well, it is something they are going to keep an eye on, but it's not nothing. When the my perinatologist came in (we'll call him Dr. SA because he is from South Africa and makes me think of a friend in high school that was from South Africa too every time I see him) and said that there is a problem with A's heart. I lay back on the table, and he scans the heart again and shows me the problem. It looked like it was jumping every few beats instead of beating. Dr. SA said he thinks it's probably what is called a premature atrial contractions, where one part of the heart contracts faster than the other.

Dr. SA's office has a neonatal cardiologist that comes into their office every 2 weeks or so and sees their patients that need her. Yesterday happened to be her day in the office. And she was going to be in in about 30 minutes. Can we wait and have her look at this? Or would we rather go down to Children's Hospital in DC and have a scan there. We will wait! Of course! I'm glad Juice was with me. We had to take Butterfly this time because my friend Laura's kids were sick and she was going to watch her. I brought my ipod and she watched movies on it the whole time like a champ. Every time they put the sound on the baby's heart, she pipes up and says, "It's the brudders saying hello! To me! Their big sista!" It's very cute.

Dr. Cardio came in, and flipped the screen away from me and proceeded to scan A's heart. It was interesting to watch their faces and hear them trying to get a good angle on it. His heart is well formed. It has all 4 chambers, and all the veins look good. The ducts are working properly, as well as the valves. The only issue is the PAC.

Baby B's only issue is that he is folded in half but seems to be handling it well. :)

Dr. Cardio explained it to us like this. The upper chambers of the heart beat first, followed by the lower chambers. That's why you get the thump-thump, thump-thump of a regular heartbeat. In A's case, the upper chambers are contracting a few 10ths of a second sooner than they should be and the bottom chambers can't catch up so they don't beat at all. It's a pretty common occerance, and even adults will have a few instances of it throughout a regular day. They want to watch A's heart a little closer, to make sure that these instances of PAC (happening every 3rd or 6th beat) doesn't interrupt normal heart function and make his heart race. That can be very dangerous because the heart will tire out and stop. But she said there is only a 1-2% chance of this happening.

It will either work itself out in the weeks before he is born, or a few weeks after. If he still has them when he is born, she will order an EKG just to make sure that there is nothing seriously wrong with the heart. And even then, they may not treat it. Most cardiac problems in children even themselves out as they grow. But now they know about it and if there is a problem, they will be looking for it.

Both Dr. Cardio and Dr. SA are not worried. Dr. SA said that I am doing remarkably well for twins. If they were worried, they would have sent me to the hospital, given me medication, or put me on bed rest. They did none of this. I just have to take it easy. Oh, and I'm not allowed to have any sort of caffeine as sometimes that makes these instances of PAC worse. It was funny to hear Dr. SA tell Dr. Cardio that we are Mormons and stay away from that stuff anyway. Wow, we only mentioned our faith in passing to him the first time we saw him and he remembered, and knew that fact! He's a really great doctor.

No more chocolate for me though. And while that's kind of sad, it's not a huge deal. Only about 4 more months until I am full term so I can not each chocolate for that long.

Safire

Christmas Pictures

Everyone,

When I was little, my parents took our picture twice a year. Once at birthdays, and once at Christmas. Our birthday pictures we were alone, and Christmas pictures we took together. When we got our old dog for Christmas, we automatically included her in the pictures. And did every year after that.

Now that I have my own kids, I really liked that tradition. So I continued it. Including the dog too. This year, since I have my new awesome camera, I thought I'd take them myself instead of going to a professional place. So I did. What do you think?



I think Soot is being a good sport.

Safire

Preparing for Twins- Stuff

Everyone,

When we first started telling everyone about the twins, they would ask us "Are you excited?" I always found that a strange question because yes, we are excited about bringing new life into the world. Most people don't know the ins and outs of the infertility world so I suppose twins could be a surprise, and sometimes not a welcome one.

Now that people have gotten used to me having twins, I get another question all the time. They put their face close to mine, hand on shoulder, and ask very softly, "Are you prepared?" Like it's some kind of secret. My answer to this is, "No, and I don't think we will be until they are 6 months old."

BUT, one thing we can do to prepare is the stuff. I really do think that that is what people are asking, but it's funny to see their reactions. Let's talk stuff.

Cribs- yes I have 2. One from Butterfly, and one from my friend Laura. (Thanks Laura!) There are rumors that my parents will buy the crib mattress and we have 2 bassinets to use when they are small. We are set in the bed department. Except for sheets. I remember taking Butterfly when she was very small to the store to buy more sheets because I think I only had one set. I'd like to not do that with these boys and so, sheets are on my list. And blankets. All of my blankets (of which I SO MANY) are all purple and pink. I used to say that I wouldn't care what they put on them because they can't even really see color but I would like them to have at least one baby boy blanket. (For those of you who are interested, we are doing their room in blue sail boats.)

Clothes- oh yes, we need clothes. But I figure that people love to buy little clothes so I'm just waiting to see what we get before I make any official lists.

Bath- we did not buy a bath with Butterfly because I figured I could use the sink. Oh how wrong I was. We ended up washing her in the shower with us until she was too big to hold, and then moved her into the big tub. I do not want to do this with these guys and a little baby bath is on my list.

Feeding- I suppose I ought to have a few bottles on hand, even though I plan on breast feeding these guys. We also would like another high chair because frankly, we only have 3 chairs at our table now. A new table is on my list, but not for awhile. (New car has to come first.) Anyone else have anything I should get for feeding? I think I may be set in that department from all of my leftover stuff with Butterfly. Oh, I do want a nice nursing pillow designed for twins.

Car seat- I think we are set on this one with a generous donation of a used but barely car seat of a friend of ours. And of course, the bigger car seats will come a little later.

Stroller- This is the biggest item I think we have to buy. I want a super nice double stroller. My reasoning is that I want something big enough to fit Butterfly in if she wants to ride (and I can wrap up one of the twins) and I want it to last many many years. I have one picked out. See it here. Yes, I am sure there are other, cheaper strollers that are just as good, but I fell in love with this one and that's the one I'm going to buy.

I can't seem to think of anything else to get for these boys. Am I covering it all? If you'd like a peak at our registry, email me and I will send you the link.

Next up, preparing for twins medically.

Safire

13 Years part 2

Everyone,

Since Butterfly is enamored with Ariel right now, I thought I'd take a few moments and type up the conclusion to the first date story. You can read the first installment here (or just look at the picture again).


Our date began early at around 1pm that Saturday afternoon. When Juice told me, I had visions of having to haul my dress around in plastic in the car all day and changing at his house. And what would I do with my hair?! Juice must have seen the expression on my face and quickly explained what we would be doing. Since the first weekend in October is our church's big semi-annual conference, we were going to plan our date around that. The second session starts at 2pm. He was coming to get me before that, and we would have a picnic and listen to the session before heading off to the dance at the school.


1pm came, and I was ready. He came to pick me up in his dad's tiny white car, and drove me over to his best friend's house to pick him up. And then Max's date. (Alisha was her name I think.) We went back over to Max's house and listened to the session while eating BLTs. Now, I hate tomatoes. So I picked mine off and just had a bacon and lettuce sandwich. Yummy! Max was horrified that I didn't like tomatoes and then promptly ate mine. Juice confided in me that he wasn't a fan of them either but liked them on sandwiches and in things. More conversation about ketchup, spaghetti sauce, etc. followed. In between listening, of course.


After the session was over, they ran us girls home so we could get ready for the dance and the guys went to the men only session that evening. I had plenty of time to get ready. When Juice showed up (looking very handsome and tall in his suit), he met my dad at the door. I was coming down the stairs and Juice looked up and saw me and said, "Wow." He also took a step back and we all laughed.


Now, this is how I remember it. Juice says that he was sitting on the couch and stood up to meet me and sat back down because he was surprised at how good I looked. (And I did look nice!) My parents side with me so that is how the story is going to be written out.


Flowers were exchanged (with a lot of hand shaking on my part. I was nervous!) and he walked me back out to his dad's tiny white car. Max was in the back. Juice put his hand on my back and whispered that I looked really good as I got in the car. I'm sure my smile went from big to huge at that point.


We drove about 20 minutes back to Juice's neighborhood and picked up Alisha. She was also wearing blue. We all looked very nice together. Once Alisha was in the car, Max was very quiet and nervous. I think he liked her.


Back at Juice's house, the guys escorted us out to a table that they had set up in the field behind Juice's house. (Juice's parents own the field...think of it as an extension of their back yard but with grape vines and various fruit trees in it. Oh, and a duck pond.) Apparently the table had been decorated before they left but it was slightly windy and it had blown all the decorations all over the field. They managed to find the lantern and the table cloth. They spread the cloth (refusing any help from us), lit the lantern and left us to go get dinner. Alisha and I chatted about dresses and the boys for about 3 minutes. I knew her from band at school, but we had never really talked.

The lantern blew out. Suddenly, we were plunged into darkness. We gasped, "Oh no!" and started to laugh because we said it the same time, the same way. The guys were coming out with the food at that point and heard us. They rushed over, tried to light the lantern and couldn't. Then the table cloth tried to blow away and take the food with it. I was quick and grabbed Juice's plate (and mine too) and watched the table cloth envelope Juice and the lantern. Hehe...he struggled, balled up the table cloth and said, "Let's go inside." Yes please! It wasn't cold, but it was too windy.

Inside, Juice's new brother in law (who had just spent 2 years in Italy on his mission) was cooking pasta for us. It was delicious! I think his sister and bil joined us at the end, and we had a great time eating and talking and laughing. Then, we decided that it was probably time to go to the dance.

The dance was at the high school, only minutes away from Juice's house. We walked into the main hall, showed our ticket (I believe it was black with silver stars all over...I think I still have it) and went into the gym. We had our pictures taken, and then started to dance. I still remember the song we danced to, since Juice complained the whole time that it kept changing beats. (You can listen to it here.) We were so late to the dance, that we only danced 6 or 7 songs and then it was over. It was probably the shortest dance I ever went to in high school and I had one of the best times with it.

We dropped of me first (I think) and Juice gave me a hug on my doorstep. That was it. Who knew that this first date would lead to other things...such as being married, having a 2 year old and twins on the way. Juice really is a very thoughtful person when he puts his mind to it. And he was very thoughtful this date. It's probably one of the main reasons that I really liked him in high school. And still like him now. :)

Safire

New Year, New Camera, New Pictures

Everyone,

Did I not talk about Christmas? No? Oh, oops. Butterfly got a huge train set and a bear that reads her stories. The train, loved it for a day. The bear, has 4 stories that he has to read to her every single morning. I love our little book worm. Juice got a very cool little puzzle, and I got a new camera. It's awesome but hard to use. It's a new Cannon Rebel. For those not camera savvy, it's not a point and shoot camera. I am enjoying learning how to use it and who better to test it on than Butterfly? Isn't she cute. I love how this one really brings out her Daddy's eyes in her.

In other news, we had a ton of snow today. Juice and Butterfly went out to play and enjoy it and I stayed home on the couch all propped up to get rid of the baby falling out feeling. I ran a bunch of errands this morning and I think I might have done too much. They are doing well, and moving around crazy. I am drinking my water and enjoying some shows I have on my DVR. I love my DVR. And my new camera.

Safire

Closed Forever!

Everyone,

About 2 weeks ago we discovered that our regular grocery store is closing forever. I am sad because people that worked there knew us by name. They said hello to Butterfly and we had been going there since she was itty bitty. We had been talking about trying out different grocery stores in the area anyway, and this just forced us to do that.

Do you know how annoying it is to go shopping at a brand new store? I had my list of things I need, and I had to wander up and down each isle looking closely for each of my items. Of course, we also went to the cheapest place in town, and we had to dodge everyone and boxes and pay attention. Most of the time I just go down the isles that I know have my stuff. It took us twice as long. How annoying.

Also annoying: the store does not have some of our staples, like natural peanut butter and diapers. So now I have to try yet another store in the area. Which means in 2 weeks when I go again, I have to pay attention yet again! Not happy.

Safire

PS- Very tired today...don't know if this makes any sense or not.

A Few Days Rest

Everyone,

It's amazing what a few days of rest will do for you.  After begging Juice to stay home from work yesterday and him having enough stuff to do from home, I feel loads better today.  I took about 3 naps yesterday, drank about 2 gallons of water and barely lifted my head from my pillow.  This morning, I woke up feeling about 50% better.  Yay!  

Butterfly is steadily improving as well.  She still has a nasty cough but she still has about a week of high doses of antibiotics to go through.  And it's a ton of antibiotics she takes every day.  I just hope that this is the last of the sickness that we will have to see in a long time.  

In other words, Butterfly has learned to jam to music.  She closes her eyes, weaves her head around and has a tiny smile on her face when she is doing it.  It is SO FUNNY to watch and I wonder where she learned it.  Zen out baby.  :)

Safire  

Guess who is on antibiotics?

Everyone,

Guess who is on antibiotics and guess who is not. Guess who is sick? Yep, me. And Butterfly has perked right up and wants to run and jump and play. But I do not even want to move. Pregnancy + cold + coughing + not sleeping at night = one grumpy mama. I've been having more contractions because of all the coughing and being dehydrated, even though I've been drinking more water than I'm supposed to. At least the boys are moving (more like freaking out every time I cough) and I know they are okay. A call is into my ob today to see what I can take.

Safire

We interrupt this program...

Everyone,

If there is one thing I will remember about this winter is how sick we have been. We are sick, yet again. But this time Butterfly has the worst of it. We just got back from her doctor and the pharmacist with high doses of antibiotics to give her. There's a lot. Good thing she really likes it.

Anyway, she weighs around 37 and a half pounds, and is a very good patient. She opens her mouth, says 'ahhh', takes deep breaths, and does all that the doctor asks her to. Thank you Corduroy and Nurse Nancy books. One ear is very very infected. She says to watch out in case of puss running out of it, it's so infected. The other ear is runny and red but not hugely infected like the other one. She also has a very wet cough (again! Ed go away!) and a temp of about 101. Poor baby is very sick. She won't eat anything, and all she wants to do is snuggle. So far today we've watched Nemo and the Brave Little Toaster. That's kind of a scary movie! And so '80s! She is now napping and hopefully will nap long and hard.

Both Juice and I are feeling a little cold-ish but nothing as bad as Butterfly. If anything gets worse, I intend to call my ob again and go on antibiotics for the 3rd time this pregnancy. I just keep getting sick. But I hope that after 2 days on the meds for Butterfly will improve her well being. Poor thing.

One thing the doctor said is that she hasn't been in to see them in over 8 months. She is normally a really healthy girl. That's nice to hear. We also discussed the boys briefly and she said she was looking forward to meeting them in May.

Let's just hope that Juice and I don't get worse.

Safire

PS- Still working on the first date post, look for it in a few days.

Thoughts

Everyone,

About a week ago I had a ton of things to write on. Now, I can't remember a thing. I am woefully spacey when I'm pregnant. I always manage to forget to pay bills, return calls, emails, etc. At least I make sure we eat. And are dressed. That's about as good as it gets. I have to haul my day planner around with me because I have so many doctor visits this time around that I have to write them all down the moment they make them or I forget.

Speaking of doctor visits, I had another one yesterday. I see my regular OB once a month, and my perinatalogist (specialist pregnancy doctor) every 3 weeks. Yesterday was a visit to my peri. I have to say that this is the most inconvenient doctor's visit ever. Each time I go they scan the kids (most definitely both boys!) for an hour. It's not something I can take Butterfly with me because do you know any 2 year old who can sit for an hour? Juice can't always get off of work (like yesterday) and when he can, he'd rather go see the ultrasound and not sit at home with Butterfly. And I feel weird about asking for so much babysitting because there is so much more coming in the future. This is one of those times I miss my mom.

The boys are doing very well. Both are about a pound, both have all body parts they are supposed to (kidneys, hearts, stomachs, etc.) and both are busy in the circle of reaction. What is that circle you ask? Well, say A kicks B. B reacts to A. A then reacts to B reacting to A. B then reacts to A reacting to B reacting to A. And so on. They are both breech with their little heads leaning towards each other like they are whispering on how best to kick me. The doctor said that I was the easiest twin pregnancy he had seen all day and he had seen about 6 before me. To use his words (and think of this in a South African accent since he grew up there), "Two very normal and active baby boys. Good luck when they are born." He also admonished me to drink more water (if I do, I may as well live in the bathroom...sheesh what is the issue with these doctors and their water?!) and call if I feel nervous at all. We would rather be safe than sorry. Check.

Butterfly is desperately trying to give up her nap, but then crashes by 6pm without dinner (because I can't get it together to feed us any sooner than 6:30pm). So then she wakes up at 3am starving and cranky and will not eat anything. So I am exhausted. And Juice is exhausted. Although I am feeling slightly annoyed at him that he is exhausted because the only reason he is tired is because he stays up till midnight playing on the computer. I go to bed early but am growing people here. He could not be tired if he chose. I can't.

I guess the only family member I haven't talked about is Cinder. She is doing well. Fine. Nothing to say about the dog.

Safire

Bad Food Service

Everyone,

I don't know what it is about my pregnancy and the fact that I hate to eat any food I cook myself. I also hate to eat home cooked food so Juice cooking is not a good change either. (Juice can cook basic bachelor stuff...mac and cheese, frozen pizza, etc. Not what I like to eat these days.) I figure this is the time in my life that I can splurge a little and eat out. Mostly, Butterfly and I go out for lunch or swing by someplace on our way home. I've had two kind of bad food experiences lately that have made me rethink where we eat.

So, first one. We are at the famous fast food place getting chicken nuggets. Instead of running through the drive through like we normally do, I thought it would be nice to go in and eat for a change. Butterfly was good, all was going well. Until the worker who's job it was to clean dining room came out. He cleaned the top of the ceiling fans. Not the best idea with a bunch of people eating around (dust is now flying in the air) but he stood on a table to do this. And then, just walked away. No cleaning of the table at all. You could see his big greasy dirty foot print on the table for as long as we were sitting there. I attempted to tell the manager about it and at least get the table cleaned off. No one understood me because no one spoke English. We left and I vowed not to eat at that place again. Yuck!

Second one. Butterfly and I were in mall (not the one by our house...closer to DC) for a doctor visit. Apparently my doctor's practice has an office in this mall. And since I had to see the doctor who saw me in the hospital for my follow up, down to the mall we went. Doctor visit was short and sweet (always is...and I always wonder about it. I mean, I know they will answer all my questions I want and listen to my complaints, but for some reason I always feel a little rushed. Could be because most of my doctor visits are during lunch since I always call with questions and they always tell me to just come in.). I figured we may as well eat in the mall before we go home and down to the food court we went. What a pitiful food court. 4 food places and very little seating. We got pizza (what mall does not have pizza?) and sat down. I was done and waiting for Butterfly to finish her slice. A huge cockroach crawled right across the table. I freaked, jumped up and grabbed Butterfly while trying to kill the awful thing. I flag down a worker, and am pointing to it (on the floor now). All three workers looked at me with blank stares. I tried cockroach in Spanish. Again, blank stares. Seriously, if I see an enormous bug crawling around a food service place I worked, I would be flipping out. Nope, nothing. So I hustled Butterfly out of there ("My pizzzzza! My pizzzza!") and went to tell the gals at the concierge desk. I have done that job before and I knew they would be able to at least get in touch with mall management to tell them. They appropriately freaked out for me and called the manager right away. I told him where I was sitting, and how the workers really did nothing for me there. He promised to take care of it, and at least they know now. But I am also never eating in that mall food court again. Gross.

What kind of bugs are lurking in other food places? Okay, maybe I shouldn't have gone down that route. Especially since I found a dead cricket in one of my pans the other day. At least mine was dead and could be cleaned. And was. And all other pans around it. And underneath the stove. No wonder my uterus is unhappy.

Safire