So here we are at 21 weeks!

How is it possible that I've only gained 10 pounds? Seriously, pre-pregnancy I could easily have gained 10 pounds in a weekend! All I can think is that these girls have a crazy metabolism (that they must have received from their daddy) and that I'm reaping the benefits. My OB said my weight was great last time I went in, and she said as long as they were growing on schedule, that she was okay with my gain being on the low end. I thought for sure after 3 weeks of bedrest that I'd be up at least a few. But I still eat VERY small quantities - I just can't get a lot down. I've been drinking a TON of water too, so that might be helping.

Here is the current belly - I have to say, I love the front shot!!!




My spotting is light, but it's still there. I wish it would go away completely, but I'm VERY thankful for light. It's a huge step above heavy, clotty or gasp...red. I've got at least 1 more week of bedrest ahead of me and then we'll see where we're at with everything.

I'm having braxton hicks contractions now, and a pretty steady rate at night time. Something new to worry about - joy! I know they are normal, but it seems like when I lay down and I'm not doing anything that I just get one after the other. Isn't that the opposite of how they are supposed to go? I see my OB on Thursday, but she doesn't do ultraosunds at this stage. I'm going to call the Perinatologist on Monday and see if I can get in and have my cervix checked. Begging may be involved and I'm surely not too proud to do it. I need the peace of mind of knowing that my cervix is still over 5cm and closed like Fort Knox after weeks of bleeding and now a week of BH!

Three weeks until viability - taking it one day at a time until I get there. Twelve weeks away from my 33 week milestone (33 weeks is the difference between the Peri delivering at the Level III NICU vs. my OB delivering at the Level II NICU. Pray, pray, pray.

Week 21: Banana

Baby gulps down several ounces of amniotic fluid every day, both for hydration and nutrition and to practice swallowing and digesting. And, these days, those taste buds actually work! Studies show that after birth, babies are most interested in tastes they've already experienced through amniotic fluid. Meaning, think about what you want your future child to eat as you prepare your own lunch.

Photo and text courtesy of thebump.com

Struggling along

This pregnancy has been so hard on me. I'm so worried that I'm going to lose the girls - and that worry comes daily...hourly.

I had red bleeding at 6 weeks. I had brown spotting every day from 7 weeks through 12.5 weeks. I had red bleeding at 11 weeks. I had a reprieve between 12.5 and 18 weeks. At 18 weeks I had brown spotting and cramping followed by an episode of red blood pouring out of me. I was put on bedrest where I've been since. I've been spotting brown since the bleed, and now I'm passing brown tissue and have a shooting pain in my cervix. I would swear that I was having Braxton Hicks in my sleep last night, too. I woke up at 2am and tossed and turned all night with a tight feeling in my uterus. I'm calling my OB today and hoping she can put my mind at ease a bit. I hate calling there...they always seem to make me feel like an idiot...like my fear and worry isn't justified. Easy for them to feel that way though - I'm guessing they haven't been through what I have been through.

I'm on the fence with excitement. I'm so afraid to get too attached - not that I haven't already. I still feel like this is going to get taken away from me suddenly. I can't stop feeling that way and I hate it. Everyone says to enjoy pregnancy because it goes so fast. Sure, I'm loving feeling them squirm and kick inside of me, and I love that I finally look pregnant, but I have not had the opportunity to enjoy being pregnant because it's been so plagued with fear.

Those of you that pray, please pray. I can't lose these girls. I just can't.

UPDATE: I talked to Dr. V. She told me I should get into therapy because she doesn't anticipate that this bumpy road is going to get any smoother. She reminded me that there is nothing either of us can do to hurt or help my pregnancy - that the SCH and low lying placenta issues are completely out of my hands.

She said the tissue passing was normal. She said as long as it's not red, that my SCH isn't getting worse and isn't active - she said she has NO concern with any brown spotting, discharge or tissue.

She said the shooting pains in my cervix/vagina are normal.

She said that since I couldn't designate a beginning and end point that I am probably not having contractions, but it is just my uterus growing and adjusting.

She told me that SCH does increase my risk of losing them, but at this point there were no red flags (like active red bleeding) to indicate concern to her, but at the same time, she can't tell me that everything will be okay.

So I stay here laying down, taking one day at a time, praying we make it to the next milestone (24 weeks).

Week 20: Canteloupe

Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, speaking of the diaper situation... baby's genitals are now fully formed!

Photo and text courtesy of thebump.com

So that pocket of "goo"...

I haven't spotted since the weekend. Go to the perinatologist, no internal involved - just an u/s...he says there is more to come out, and wa-la - I woke up spotting again. I have a bad feeling that my bedrest journey will not end tomorrow. :( I worry so much about my job. I know the girls are the most important thing, but my job is pretty important to me too.

I'm wondering now how I'm going to do anything if I end up staying here in bed. We wanted to tour the hospital, take a safety class, and take a newborn class in March. I also have three showers planned, and the hostesses are wondering if they should even send invites. And I haven't bought a thing for the girls - I'm not even registered yet.

I'm a little depressed today. Haven't I payed my dues just trying to GET pregnant? Do I really have to suffer and worry through the whole pregnancy too?

Anatomy Scan Today!

We had our Anatomy Scan with the Perinatalogist today. Everything looks good. There is a pocket of "goo" that might still bleed out, so my ER incident may have had less to do with my placenta (which is still low lying) and more to do with a subchorionic hematoma. He said it was likely that she may keep me on bedrest for the duration of the pregnancy, but with more flexibility than just eating/bathroom/shower breaks. We'll see on Friday when I follow up with my OB. It's her call, since she put me on bedrest to begin with. She seemed to imply that this wasn't permanant at my last appointment, so who knows!

The girls (and they are FOR SURE both girls) are doing great. Measuring on schedule (19-20 weeks), weighing in at 10-12 ounces each, and 6.5-7" long. Both are transverse (laying side to side accross me). Baby A is on the bottom and her head is on my left. Baby B is on top and her head is on my right. No signs of Downs Syndrome, Spina Bifida, cleft palate, physical deformities or any organ issues.

I'll post pictures later - they are BEYOND precious! We still don't have our scanner hooked up to the new post-robbery computer. Which reminds me, I REALLY need to complete the robbery police report and insurance paperwork. Agh! I guess that can be tomorrow's task!

Another day in paradise...I mean, in bed

Bed rest is SO boring. Geesh...as good as it sounds to not go to work, it's not. I'm lonely, I'm depressed and I'm scared for my baby girls. But things do seem to be improving so at least it's working. The spotting is pretty much gone this morning. No sign that Monday night happened at all. I'm assuming if there was an issue with abruption, that I would still be bleeding. Hopefully my placenta is moving up, although my belly is just not growing that fast. Well...it is growing though!



I lost a pound this week so I'm only up 9 pounds at 19 weeks. I guess I'd better talk to my doctor about that this Wednesday. I never thought a lack of weight gain would be an issue for me. It's not like I'm not eating a TON. And while laying in bed, no less.

Let me brag about my sweet husband. He has been AMAZING. He's working 7am to 6pm and then coming home and taking care of me, the house and the furbabies. And he brought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers yesterday to brighten up the scenery from my bed. I'm so blessed to have someone that is truly a partner and not just a spouse. I honestly couldn't have asked for better.

Guess who is loving bedrest? LOL!

Week 19: Mango

Vernix caseosa, a greasy white substance made of lanugo, oil, and dead skin cells (yum) now coats baby's skin, shielding it from the amniotic fluid. (Picture yourself after a nine-month bath, and the need for protection makes sense.) You might get to see the vernix at birth, especially if baby is premature.

Photo and text courtesty of thebump.com

Burglary, Bedrest and Baby Girls

I think I'll be spending a little more time keeping this blog updated now, given the following.

First off, our home was burglarized last week. DH came at 4:45 to find our front door kicked in. They didn’t take a ton of electronics, but they did steal most of my jewelry including some heirlooms. Then we got robbed again when we found out our insurance had a $1000 limit on jewelry. We took a huge loss but we’re trying to put it behind us. We’re very thankful that they didn’t vandalize our home or hurt our pets. We’ve got a new door, and a new alarm system, and we’re trying to get over the invasion of someone being in our home.

Saturday night I had a sharp cramp down low. I would compare it to a pulled muscle feeling, and had I been moving, I would have assumed it was round ligament pain...accept I wasn't moving when it happened. Sunday morning at church it started hurting again. When I came home from church, I found out that I had a bit of brown spotting. I called my OB and she wasn't concerned, but said if I was worried I could go to the Er. Well, I was worried so off we went. The ER was great - they got us right in. They ran my blood and did a urinalysis for a UTI, and then did a full anatomy scan u/s. The babies were doing great, and at that appointment it was confirmed that I am carrying two baby girls. My cervix was measuring 4.8cm - long and closed. The ER doc mentioned that I might have a low lying placenta according to the tech. He said he spoke to my OB, and I was being discharged on pelvic rest.

I went to work Monday and just had very light spotting throughout the day, no cramping that stands out. Monday night I started to have really bad cramping, got up to check and found red spotting. Within minutes, it went from spotting, to period like flow, to pouring out of me like it did when I miscarried. We drove to the local ER rather than the one 30 minutes away that I will deliver at and in 10 minutes I filled a pad completly. On the way there I called my OB and she told me to tell them I have a low lying placenta. I'm a little pissed she didn't tell me that when I talked to her on Monday, but I think she knows it would have panicked me and maybe she thought things would not get worse and it would be a mute point. Anyway, the ER was very responsive. They wheeled me into the trauma room and had IVs in both of my arms before I could snap my fingers. One for fluid, one in case I needed blood. The ER doc came in and checked and my bleeding had slowed down. They ran all my blood again and did another full anatomy scan. The tech told me the girls are measuring 9 ounces and measuring right on schedule for 18 weeks. They told me they could admit me, or I could go home for the night. After seeing the clientele that comes in after midnight (many with police or security escorts), we happily were discharged and got home around 2pm.

My OB called me Tuesday morning and brought me in for a follow up. She did an internal and told me that there were lots of clots that were still going to come out, but that my cervix is nice and closed. She's placed me on bedrest through January 22. I see the perinatologist on January 20 and a follow up with my OB two days later. We'll see where we go from there.

So I'm home, I'm bored already, and laundry is piling up around me. Poor hubs had a hard time finding clean socks today. :( I feel awful I can't help him. But these little girls are obviously the only thing I am responsible for taking care of right now.

18 Weeks: Sweet Potato

18 weeks...holy moly! Where has the time gone? I'm so thankful! It's nice to finally feel pregnant and I'm starting to actually look pregnant and not fat. I'm only up 10 pounds which thrills me to no end, but I know they'll be backing on shortly as the babies really start to grow. I felt one of them move for the first time on Friday night. The most amazing feeling EVER and I can't wait to feel it daily!



Baby's become amazingly mobile (compared to you, at least), passing the hours yawning, hiccupping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking, and swallowing. And baby is finally big enough that you'll soon be able to feel her movements.

Photo and text courtesy of thebump.com

Moving Right Along

I'm having a really hard time believing that I'm actually 17 weeks pregnant with twins. It's SO surreal!

I'm feeling pretty good these days. It's been over a week since I've been sick, so yay for that. I've really suffered with headaches though, but I don't think they are necessarily related to the pregnancy itself. I used to get tension headaches 3-5 days a week for years until I started acupuncture. It's been a while since I've had a treatment. Add that to the fact that I can't sleep on my belly anymore and wake up with a stiff neck daily, and I think we have our culprit. I'm having a hard time getting in for acupuncture, but I'm going to have to figure something out.

Weight gain is going well - did I just say that? LOL! Seriously though, I can't tell you how freaking THRILLED I am to only be up 10 pounds at 17 weeks, especially with all the holiday food in the past 6 weeks. I know it's coming though. The nurse said that they normally see people gain 10 pounds between 16 and 20 weeks. Yikes! I just hope my gain is enough for the babies to be healthy. This is the point where they are packing on the fat (the babies, not me), though I know they will take the nutrients they need from me first.

17 more days before we find out the gender and the shopping begins! Woohoo!

17 Weeks: Onion

Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. His umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes now feature one-of-a-kind prints.

Photo and text courtesy of thebump.com

Elective Gender Scan

We went for an elective gender scan on Wednesday at one of the 3D clinics. I was really unimpressed with this place, which was disappointing. The girl tried though, I have to give her credit. My babies were very uncooperative, so I can't say if someone with more experience would have had better luck or not. On a good note, both babies were doing well - very active and healthy looking!

Baby A had the cord between his/her legs the first try. The second try, s/he would NOT sit still. She "thinks" this baby is a girl. I don't see why she's saying girl, other than not seeing a penis.





Baby B had his foot between his legs the first try. The second try, he had his hand over his genitals - gotta be a boy, right? The third shot, we got a view of what appears to be a penis. We're pretty certain the gender is correct on him, but not betting the bank on it.



She did say we could come back for 50% off within two weeks, but our full anatomy scan with the perinatologist is in 3 weeks, so for now we're going with "inconclusive".  The economy will have to wait for grandma and I (and auntie Keli) to start shopping.

16 Week OB Appointment

After a weekend of cramping and lots of pushing/pressure, I went in for my 16 week appointment on Monday, December 28.

No ultrasound unfortunately, but everything looks good. Heartbeats were great. Baby on the right was going crazy - she had a hard time getting him/her to stay still for 15 seconds to check the heartrate! My uterus measurement is 22 weeks. My BP was 124/75. No weight gain between 12-16 weeks on her scale - I'm up about 8-10 total on my home scale which I think is good for twins. Cervix was long and closed up tight - she said it looked like a non-pregnant cervix. Good I'm guessing? So everything is going well. Still sick on and off, and still very tired, but I feel good for the most part. I'm still in shock I think.

Here is my 16 week belly.  I included the 10 week belly shot for comparison.