26 weeks and check out those sexy socks!!

So, it is mid-week of the 26th week of pregnancy and life is good! Babies are moving like crazy and it is hard for me to understand why I don't yet have any stretch marks, because I really feel stretched to the max. I also struggle to comprehend how I could possibly have 2 1/2 more months to go. 

I have been busy working on a few projects for babies and me. Hopefully I will get around to sharing pictures in a day or two.

I went to my regular Dr for the first time this week for regular annual exam. He and his wife have twins too, so he was very excited about the babies. He took one look at my feet and pretty much ordered me to wear compression socks all day, every day. He said his wife had lits of problems with swelling too and really just advice me to suck it up and wear them for my own health sake. My hubby looked at my feet that night and said that he was starting to veins, where there previously were no veins. BIG SIGH!! So now I wear them and look really hot in my flip flops too. The current pair is too big in the toe, constricts at bit at the ankle. Hopefully my Dr will prescribe custom made sock... Wonder if they come in cool colors???

25 weeks +

So, I realized today that I have been more afraid of loosing these two little miracles, than I have allowed myself to believe. Two things made me realize this:

A)My family and friends have not even known about the existence of this blog, and I think that it was partly a mechanism to try and protect myself, in case something went wrong. I don't think I even told my husband about it for the first few months. I am finally ready to believe that this is going to happen, that the twins might actually one day be in our hands and not just something we talk about and try to prepare for.

B) I have been soo sluggish and afraid of doing things, afraid to work out, afraid to leave the comfort of my big comfy chair, because WHAT IF something were to happen to the babies. WHAT IF...I was to blame for a miscarriage or extremely early pre-term labor that would jeopardize the health of our babies. Now in my logical brain, I know that this is a completely unfounded fear - but that didn't make it less real to me.

So, what changed? Well, I definitely think that hitting the 24 week mark (viability - they could actually survive outside the womb) made a big difference in how I feel about this pregnancy and how I allow myself to feel my emotions. And I am sure pregnancy hormones have a tremendous effect here too. I have had ups and downs over the last week or so. Days where I feel like a whale and feel like this cannot possibly go on for 2 1/2 months. And then there are days like yesterday and today, where I have been out and about running errands, going to the swimming pool (and even exercising some at a moderate pace of cause), cleaning the house, making cupcakes, without feeling too overwhelmed and super tired.

With that being said, here is my (not so) weekly update:

How far along: I am 25 weeks + 2 days (picture taken this weekend at a hotel in Amarillo).

Total weight gain: Up an astounding 30 lbs. Travelling always make me add a few lbs.

Maternity clothes: Yup. Although I still wear "normal" dresses and skirts. But alas, most of my pre-pregnancy shirts and tank tops just do not cover up the belly anymore.

Stretch marks? None so far, but I can't see how I could possibly avoid them. The other night the skin on my belly felt numb, so there is definitely some re-arranging happening in with the nerves in my skin.  

Sleep: Mostly fine. I just have to say, how much I love my Snoogle pillow, it really makes the world of difference. The other day I made a new cover for it, so it is now even more comfortable. 

Best moment of the week: Escaping town for 4th of July. Hubby and I decided to do one mad dash and actually leave the house for the weekend. We discussed several places, but in the end, we ended up driving to Palo Duro Canyon, which was beautiful and a lot of fun. For those of you who don't know it, Palo Duro is the 2nd largest canyon in the US and is kinda a more accessible Grand Canyon, where you can drive to the bottom and camp. Being pregnant I have completely given up camping, which I normally love, but the thought of having to stay in a tent, while getting up to pee 2-3 night just makes me go NO. We did get to watch a beautiful sunset over the canyon, while watching turkey vultures return to their roosting tree. Next day David went for a hike and I stayed in a picnic area and enjoyed myself until it just got too hot. Then we were off to Amarillo, where we intended to watch the firework - that did not happen, since we were just tired and thrilled to stay in the hotel room watching TV (we don't have that at home).

The best moment of this week, thus far, was going to see my high-risk Dr and getting to see the babies again. They have just gotten so big. Boy weighs 1 lb 14oz and girl weighs 1 lb 13oz. They were both pretty active and had moved since last scan. Boy continues to be head down, ready to go, while girl is now lounging across my belly sideways. I had been blaming the boy on making it hard for me to breathe, but apparently it is the girl's head. Baby boy (Baby A) was really funny. He was positioned in a way, in which he was mooning the sonographer every time she tried to look at baby girl's face. Also the girl was doing little hiccups while she was being measured, so now I know what hiccups feel like.

Miss anything: Being able to bend at the waist. Belly is always in the way.

Movement: Tons of movement every day. They especially like to make little hills and valleys out of my belly. One will stick it's but out on the right and then the other will do it on the left. 

Food cravings: Tic Tacs! Fortunately HEB has buy 2 get the 3rd free. 

Anything make you sick or queasy? Nope.

Gender: Boy and Girl.

Labor signs: Nope.

Symptoms: Some Braxton Hicks, swollen feet and difficulties breathing due to the giant belly. Oh, yeah and crying for little to no reason. 

Belly button in or out? Remain in, but not sure for how long....

Looking forward to: Getting my Glucose Tolerance test done tomorrow - probably should not have had those cupcakes today!! And our childbirth class at the hospital this weekend. Other than that, I guess just hanging out with my wonderful hubby.

Hope you have a wonderful week!

Week 22

So, I wrote this update last Tuesday on my Nexus using the Blogger App and then the draft disappeared for a week and now it is back... I must just be very technologically impaired or Blogger doesn't like me!?!

Wow, week 22 already?? As of yesterday, these babies have spent 141 days growing inside my belly, and we have known of their existence for 130 days. I am hoping, that they will stay put for another 85 days or so, so that my parents get to arrive from Denmark before the birth. And for their own good, I hope that they make it another 100 days, but we shall see.

I am feeling myself becoming way more sloth-like than ever before. Not necessarily because I am tired all the time (although that is definitely a contributing factor many days) but because my body is responding to changes. I am struggling tremendously with swelling of my feet and if I am out and about running errands or even at home, just standing around, my feet and ankles become swollen to the point where the ankle bones simply disappear. My entire leg then looks like a continuation of the knee, sexy, huh!! This is due to my low blood pressure, which often is lower than 90/60.

Anyway, here is what 22 weeks looks like for me:

How far along? 22 weeks and 1 day.
Total weight gain: 25 lbs.
Maternity clothes? I still don't have much in the way of maternity clothes. I am just so picky and since I don't HAVE to look presentable most days, I usually don't. Shorts and a T-shirt separating at the middle is my current style.
Sleep? I have been sleeping pretty good lately, although getting out of bed at night, I sometimes do stupid stuff causing shooting round ligament pain. One night was so bad that I couldn't go back to bed immediately and seriously wondered if I had just caused pre-term labor. Had to sit in my comfy chair for 1/2 hour until pain and cramping went away.
Best moment of the week: Working on and finishing our dresser. Getting to see the babies last week and know that they are growing well. They both measured in the 82nd percentile, which makes me so happy. They weighed about 1 lb each at 21 weeks. Oh, and finding a box of baby clothes on Craigslist for $25. And also meeting up with the local MoM group (Mothers of Multiples) here in San Antonio.
Miss anything? Being able to run around like a crazy person doing stuff.
Movements? Lots and lots, at all times of the day. In fact baby girl just kicked so hard it kinda scared me..
Food cravings: None really. But the hungers have definitely set in. I am hungry all the time.
Anything make you sick or queasy? Nope.
Labor signs: None so far.
Symptoms: RLP, especially in the pelvic area. Braxton hicks, plantar faciitis, low blood pressure, nesting behavior, some lower back pain.
Looking forward to: going to two different breast feeding classes next week, one is just for multiples. And I just picked up My Brest Friend Twin Nursing Pillow today - it is huge!! Having a friend of my hubby visit from California next week.

Goofing around today

Being totally goofy today because I picked up my twin nursing pillow!!

Testing

Nursery Dresser

So hubby and I decided to make a dresser for the nursery. Here is what we came up with. Needless to say, we are a bit untraditional. It is a cheap pine dresser from IKEA, painted with awesome colors with names like Margarita, Radiant Sun, Thai Curry and Inferno, stained to match the elephant hamper from Home Decorators. To top it off, we cut toy animals up and filled their "asses" with resin.

And voila....

WAAAYYY Overdue Update!!

So, it seems like the entire electronic world is out to get me. First my laptop took a turn for the worse, then it was our desktop's turn. I then tried to write an update on my tablet, but somehow managed to delete that prior to sending it.GRRRR! So, I took a much needed break from electronic devices (as least as far as writing anything) and am back with a vengeance today...So, here goes update for week 17-20.

WEEK 17 HIGHLIGHTS:

Week 17 was amazing, we got to see our babies yet again. It was another nice long ultrasound where they checked and measured everything. We finally got to find out the genders of both...

BOY and GIRL

Baby A is the boy
Baby B is the girl

Adorable little feet

We are just over the moon!! I really thought that it was going to be two boys, but was happily surprised. Hubby's sister had guessed it right and as she said "my brother is just very efficient!!" They both measured right on schedule and the only issue was that the boy has slightly enlarged kidneys (hydronephrosis) but the Dr suspects that it will resolve itself prior to birth, so she told us not to worry.

We also got to go on a nice relaxing weekend just north of Houston. Getting there however was quite eventful. We had a big storm coming through and as I was driving there to meet hubby, I had to stop several times because the hail and rain made it impossible to see in front of me. The lightning was quite spectacular too - Texas really has weather that can kill ya, they are not messing around! Hubby's flight into Houston was re-routed to Louisiana and for a couple hours we contemplated me going to Louisiana to pick him up. But we finally met up in Houston and made our way to Huntsville State Park for some hiking and relaxing. Mostly relaxing because I have gotten really lazy!

WEEK 18 AND 19 HIGHLIGHTS:

The week started out with a new swim suit - I am now ready for summer.

And then we were off to California for Memorial Day to spend time with family and friends. We had such a great time and on Sunday they had arranged a surprise baby shower for us.

It was great seeing friends and co-workers again. And although we got lots of gift for the babies, I totally failed to take a picture, these just happen to be pictures a friend posted to Facebook. We were able to fit all of the adorable clothes in our suitcases but will have to wait for all the big stuff until hubby's parents come out.

Week 19 also happens to be the first time we felt a real kick. It was almost as if someone was inside my belly, flicking a finger on the inside. Bizarre!! Hubby got to feel it too!!

WEEK 20: 

How far along: 20 weeks + 3 days

Total weight gain: 22 lbs

Maternity clothes: Finally found a pair of maternity shorts I like, but besides that I wear mostly dresses when I leave the house, all of which are non-maternity. I kinda like it when the belly is out there...

Sleep: Got worse for a while. Waking myself up snoring and also completely out of breath because the sheer size of belly and boobs was smothering me. SOLUTION: 1) Snoogle pillow to prevent me from unintentionally rolling onto back. 2) Blocks under the head of the bed to elevate chest. 3) Comfy nursing tank to sleep in.

Best moment of the week: Getting to hear the babies' heartbeats at the OB appointment. It had been 3 weeks since last time I heard it. It instantly calmed me down.

Miss anything: Well, this answer will probably remain the same throughout my pregnancy. Beer, I miss beer!! Especially on hot days. But alas beer is not a recommended nutrient for babies, so it'll have to wait a couple months.

Movement: Yes, lots of fluttery, rolling motions and a few kicks here and there. The girl is definitely more active than the boy. 

Food cravings: Sushi continues to be number one and boy was it good visiting my favorite sushi place in Monterey, CA. Crystal Fish Sushi - you are the best in the world.

Anything make you sick or queasy? Nope. 

Gender: Boy/Girl - couldn't be more excited!

Labor signs: None so far.

Symptoms: Round ligament pain and pain in my tail bone. Braxton Hicks, especially when tired or overdoing it. Might be developing plantar faciitis, my heels hurt and my feet have flattened out.  

Belly button in or out? In, but probably not for much longer.

Looking forward to: Another appointment with my high-risk OB next week. So excited them wiggle around again. Also looking forward to receiving the first and only thing I have bought for the nursery so far. So I will leave you with a picture of this adorable elephant hamper - no 20 week picture. Will post one early next week (elephant looks so much cuter than I do anyway!!)

Well that became quite the lengthy update - hopefully I will get better about doing regular updates, now that we finally have our desktop computer off the floor!