Wow! I still have to keep repeating those words and still they don't seem real, well....except for this massive growing belly makes it a little more real.
Again, I had quite a busy week and lots of exciting and not so exciting things happening.
Last Sunday evening while I was putting my nightly tummy oil/lotion regimen I noticed that the "vertical line" they talk about that runs down the center of the belly is starting to appear. It was kinda cool to see and I immediately called Justin into the bathroom to make sure I wasn't seeing things. He said he noticed it too and ask what the heck it was. I think it is some hormone thing?? I acted like I totally knew in front of Justin, but honestly I don't know why you get it and after some googling I realized I was right. Cool.
Monday I had my second pre-natal massage (my first was on our baby moon). And I must say it was amazing! The masseur's name was Gary and he is the best! I told Justin I am now in love with a man named Gary, and he said if Gary can keep me happy for the next several months he is totally ok with that! Ha ha! Gary also told me he has 2 sets of fraternal twins!! How cool is that! He gave me a ton of positive information about twin pregnancy, birth, and taking care of them. I will continue to see Gary about every 3 weeks, and I can't wait! It makes my hips, legs, feet and lower back feel so much better.
Monday night we went for our first of a 3 week class at the hospital called Multiples and more. There are 5 other couples in the class besides us and everyone is having fraternal twins. I was surprised that out of the 6 couples only us and one other couple used infertility methods to conceive twins. The rest were just natural twins. One other couple in the class is actually due the same day as us with twin boys, so we were laughing and saying we could set them up!! They are both anesthesiologists too, so hey, might as well set the girls up with rich doctors sons right!? Most of the information in this first class was pretty general, but we did get to ask questions amongst the group and it was nice to see what other women in my position thought or felt. We will go to this class for the next 2 Monday's, and we are hoping we get lots of new helpful information.
I have also started making baby headbands and decorating knit caps as well. It is so much fun and relaxing for me. I found a tutorial online and I can make the headbands in different age sizes with all kinds of fun colors and flowers. I will post a picture of some of them below.
Wednesday late morning I had a very cool moment! I felt Baby B move or kick for the first time! It was so amazing! And in that moment it made it a little more real that there is something in this growing belly of mine. I felt her again kicking Wednesday evening. Justin tried to feel it by putting his hand on my belly, but he said he couldn't feel anything. I feel like I can feel it on the inside and with my hand on the outside. I was disappointed that he couldn't feel it because it is such a cool feeling, but I asked another one of my friends husband and he said the same thing happened to them and he really couldn't feel any movement till like 22 weeks. On Friday I felt Baby A move and kick for the first time which was another very cool moment. It seems like she is harder to feel because she is so smooshed down at the bottom. And once I felt each one move I now feel them several times a day and I am still in awwww every time it happens. I can't wait for Justin to be able to feel it! Ok, update!!! We were just laying on the couch and i had him put his hands on my belly and he totally felt Baby B kick like 5 times!! It was awesome!
Thursday we had a doctors appointment and ultrasound. We took Justin's mom with us because she really wanted to see the babies on ultrasound. I think from her reaction she really loved being there and seeing them on the screen. We had a new ultrasound tech named Shana this time and I was not impressed with her. She sped through the ultrasound and only gave us 2 pictures of baby B and none of baby A. We are used to getting several pictures of each one so I think Justin and I were taken back by her, and we will say something at our next appointment. But the good news is the babies look great and healthy. She did not do growth measurements this time, but next appointment we will find out how big they are.
The doctor appointment portion was pretty quick and I only had a few questions I had accumulated over the last 2 weeks. We discussed my weight, which overall I have only gained 6 pounds, which is much less than the doctor would like, but the babies are big and healthy so he isn't too worried, but instructed me to eat lots of fats and carbohydrates to try and put on more weight. He said everything I eat is just going to them, but he understood because I have been nauseated a lot. And I just have to say how much it sucks that so many people told me how awesome pregnancy was because you were hungry all the time and could eat whatever you wanted and lots of it. That has NOT been my experience, and just getting enough food in my body is an uphill battle daily.
We also discussed cord blood banking, which I must say is a much more complicated decision for many reasons when you are having twins. We did get the information we needed from the doctor in order for us to make an informed decision. The doctor also suggested floating in water is really good for my body and the babies because it takes the pressure off of everything. So, yes I will be at the pool a lot this summer with my rafts and noodles floating away! The last thing we did is the doctor measured and poked at my belly. He hit 2 spots down low on my abdomen that made me jump because they were very sore/sensitive. (I hadn't noticed before he did this). He said this soreness tells him that I am having tiny contractions. But don't panic, this is totally normal! Phew! Yes, it made me freak out too until he said that. Then he measured my belly and it measured 26 inches. So I am measuring at what a woman carrying a single baby would be at 26 weeks. Wow!! This means I am about 6 weeks ahead which is totally normal for twins.
I spent Thursday afternoon floating in my friend Jenny's pool and it felt great! And overall I have been feeling great this whole week including evenings and night time. I have been continuing the Prilosec Unisom combo and it seems to be helping. But wait..........Friday morning I woke up at 530am and couldn't sleep, so I went on the couch to watch TV. I made a cup of decaf and an English muffin, took one sip and one bite and jumped up, made a beeline for the bathroom and threw up. Ummmm, it totally came out of nowhere. And the entire rest of the day was ruined. My stomach hurt all day, and I could not eat anything. 5 steps forward, 1 step back.
I also saw the chiropractor again this week and I think that is helping my lower body pain, so I will continue with that. I have just realized I can't run 20 errands in one day. 2-3 places is my limit, and then my legs and feet don't hurt so bad.
Today my husband took me to brunch and it was so good except for the fact that I have to eat like a turtle and was pretty uncomfortable. It seems like my uterus has taken over my entire abdomen and is trying to take over my lungs and rib cage, so I feel like everything is crushed in there, which makes it uncomfortable to eat. I feel like I want to be put in a taffy pulling machine and stretched out to make my abdomen longer. Oh Willy Wonka, where are you when I need you?
I have been working on ordering things for the nursery this week including curtain rods, curtains, the dresser, and closet re-organization brackets. I think I have everything ordered and in motion, which makes me much less stressed about it. I have heard our doctor is the king of putting his patients on bed rest (which is understandable because all of his patients are high risk), so I want to get everything done sooner rather than later in case this happens to me.
I think that is all for this week. Still can't believe we have made it this far and that we are having 2 babies!! I pinch myself daily to remind myself that, YES this is really happening. And even though I complain and they make me throw up, I am grateful for every moment, whether my complaining makes it seem that way or not.
My mind seems to now be shifting to not being so concerned with the pregnancy and panicking about what to do with them once they get here, because I feel clueless!!! Help! More on that next week and after our second multiples class.
Here are the pictures from the week:
Only 1 ultrasound photo this time of Baby B sucking her thumb! Pretty cute!
My 5 month/20 week belly photo. Babies are the length of bananas. We didn't get a fruit/weight comparison this week, only length.
Here is one without my hand in the way, so you can really see how big it is getting! Ahhh!!
Here is my self-portrait attempt in the bathroom mirror. Not too bad.
Here is the first half of the hats and headbands I made. Pretty cute, huh!?
This is the second round I made.
Thought I would include a picture of my handsome husband and one of our 3 furry friends since we only had 1 ultrasound photo this week.
And last but certainly not least are my 3 furry girls posing for their mama!! Love you girls!
How far along? 5 months or 20 weeks!!! Beyond half way in the twin world!!
Total weight gain/loss: 6 pounds total gain/loss
Maternity clothes? Yes, but still loving my victoria's secret boyfriend sweatpants as well
Stretch marks? No thank you
Sleep: Sleeping better, but also going to bed early and waking up earlier
Best moment this week: Feeling the babies move and kick! One of the coolest feelings I have ever had!
Miss Anything? Smelled my husbands mimosa at brunch this morning and I miss it!!
Movement: Yes, finally! So exciting! Can't wait for them to get stronger!
Food cravings? Unfortunately, no.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Most things still.
Labor Signs: Apparently I am having tiny contractions which I was unaware of, but they are totally normal?? Weird!!!
Belly Button in or out? Top part is starting to flip out a little. Bummer, thought I was going to maintain my innie!!
Wedding rings on or off? Off, fake on one
Happy or Moody most of the time: very happy this week, but I still have my random crying episodes at really weird things
Weekly Wisdom: Slow down, take it easy and everything will get down when it is supposed to.
Looking forward to: More movement and kicking from the babies, our next multiples class, and hopefully an appetite??? Please please!!
Jenny & Justin +5 girls
Very cute hats & hair pretties. I hope your girls will keep them on better than mine did!
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