Santa!!!

Today was Pictures with Santa day! Anna was taking a nap and woke up just before this picture was taken. There were a few shots in the beginning where it looked like Santa had slipped her some children's Benadryl because her head was slumped over completely. I actually wish we had opted for one of those pictures instead. They were so funny I couldn't stop laughing. Unlike Sandy's experience (you can check it out here http://thehardels.blogspot.com/) we managed to get our two kids looking in the general vicinity of the camera. At least you blocked the view of Santa's water bottle, Sandy!

I'm glad we went with Sandy and her family, it was a great way to kick off the holiday madness.

We walked around the mall for a bit after this and ran into another couple with 7 week-old boy/girl twins. As I chatted with them I remembered that when Alex and Anna were that age both Z and I were very hesitant to take them out at all, so I had to congratulate them. Especially on such a miserable rainy day.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A belated happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We had a great time at my mom's house. My sister J. made an untraditional dinner of roast chicken, which was delicious. I also test drove my mom's Kodak camera based on feed back from Auntie C when I asked her opinion on a Digital SLR camera. I have a Nikon S52C, it's a slender point and shoot which takes decent pics and video, but I may have to upgrade it to one with nicer options after using my mom's.

Last month I bought some nice yarn and a knitting pattern book for easy baby clothes. I finished the Ribby Hat pattern on Thursday night. Alex is wearing it in the picture below. I'm thinking about tackling a V-Neck sweater pattern next. Babies are doing very well. Anna is still not sleeping through the night and is having a very tough time falling back asleep without one of us putting her pacifier back after it pops out. I thought I had found a solution last Sunday when I put her to sleep on her stomach and she slept all night. This did not last long and by the end of the week she is back to where she was before. She is doing very well with eating. I have been feeding them every evening and so far she loves everything, except peaches. Alex, interestingly enough, does not care for anything I give him. I keep trying, however. Alex rolled over completely from back to front Thankgiving day, a first for the little guy! Too bad daddy was snoozing and didn't see it. Z did get a chance to see it the next day, and was just as excited about it.

We bought the Baby Einstein bouncer last week and the babies are really digging it. It occupies them for a good thirty minutes at a time. I'm hoping they get a lot of use out of it, I checked other bounces and exer-saucers and the reviews said a lot of the babies grew out of them quickly, but some had this one a long time.

Sorry about the link to the Russian Facebook in a previous post. I didn't know you have to sign up to get in there. Incidentally, I just signed up for Facebook, so if you have an account add me as a friend. I don't have many.

365

One year ago today I peed on a stick and saw a positive pregnancy test for the first time in my life. Watching the liquid (yes, pee) soak up into the test window I prepared myself the same way I always did: expecting a negative. My sister told me a year before that about her sister-in-law and how her pregnancy test showed positive IMMEDIATELY and there was no question about the outcome. I never failed to recall that story for each of the six or so negative home pregnancy tests I held in my hand, squinting my eyes, thinking, well, maybe if I wait another minute it might change.

So when my test didn't immediately indicate my 'condition' I was a little hesitant when I started to notice a plus sign appearing, very faintly. It never did show up completely, so I pessimistically informed Z, "well, it could be the hcg booster I had over 10 days ago." For those of you that don't know, hcg is the hormone that can be detected in a home pregnancy test. If an hcg booster shot is not out of your system completely you can get a false positive. I was well outside the threshold, but I was not about to be burned by happiness of all things. Why was I given an hcg booster, you ask? That's a post for another day, but not today, today if for happy memories.

My emotions were all over the place. I had to fly out to Charlotte that evening with co-workers and pretend like the biggest event in my life up to now wasn't happening. Anyway, some smart ones figured it out. Could it be because I felt I had to buy more pregnancy tests and take one every morning? They were all positive, so by the time I got back and had an official blood test at the doctors I knew I was pregnant. It would be another 5 days until I found out I was carrying multiples, when my upside down emotional state went for another wild ride.
So here it is, forever immortalized in jpeg format. A day I'll never forget. If I squint just so I swear it looks like it's giving me the finger.

Russian Facebook?

My husband discovered the Russian version of Facebook recently and has been having a blast. He posted some pictures and a lot of his friends and relatives have contacted him. I think it is hilarious.
Check out the site:
http://www.odnoklassniki.ru/user/249898223221

The site is completely in Russian, but you'll get the gist of it. The best part is that his mom called me tonight to rave about seeing the pictures. I'm trying to get them to come here to this blog, hopefully now they'll cruise over.

BabyWare

I inherited/stole some of my mom's silverware. I can't remember if it was before I went back to college, before I got married, or after I moved back home to PA. Whenever the date (I'm leaning towards between getting married and moving to Seattle) I like the pattern. It's Paul Revere from Oneida, a very simple pattern that my mom happened to own around 50 settings of. Well, let's say she had some to spare. I remember an oversized mug that had a virtual boquet of teaspoons, with some beautiful iced tea spoons for dramatic effect poking out here and there.

So for some reason or other I was on the Oneida website looking at patterns while I was on maternity leave. Clearly I didn't have enough to do, with all that time to cruise the internet. Anyway, I looked up the Paul Revere pattern and found that this pattern also comes with an infant and children's set. At the time I made a mental note to look for it in the local Premium Outlets, which has an Oneida outlet store.

I finally made it out there and remember to look, and found the set! I'm very excited about them. Here is a picture. I cannot get it to rotate, so I know it looks odd.

So I'm happy to say that all my silverware matches. It will come in very handy, as the babies are doing pretty well eating their foods.

First Halloween

Alex and Anna's first Halloween was probably more fun for Z and I than it was for the two of them. Every time I put Anna in her costume I could not help but laugh, she looked hilarious. So did Alex. We did not walk the neighborhood, instead Z and I dressed up the babies and sat out on the front step handing out candy and showing off. It was a nice night and there were plenty of people out, we had a great time.

The four month well baby visit to the pediatrician went very well last week. Alex weighed 16 lbs. and Anna 13. They received their shots with appropriate crankiness and crying but recovered very nicely. We discussed starting solid foods and I have been trying out the rice cereal, but so far it has been a mixed bag. Alex is not taking to it, and it's hard to tell with Anna. She doesn't make a face or cry, like Alex, but she does spit some out so I don't know how much actually makes it to her stomach. I'll keep trying, in any case.

I hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween!

Maternity Photos

About four weeks ago I finally sat down at the computer and went through the proofs from my maternity photo session. I had really been putting it off, because I didn't have the patience to sift through over 170 pictures to find 'just the right one'. I sort of didn't have the time, either. I chose 3, plus one formal shot to send over to the relatives in Russia. One is a black and white belly shot I want to have professionally framed to hang in the babies room. There is another belly shot I really liked and the third is one of Z and I. We don't have a nice photo of just the two of us so I thought it would be nice to have.

It was really hard to choose, but I think I got some nice ones.

The babies have been doing really well. A week after I went back to work Alex started sleeping through the night. Just having one of them sleeping all night has been wonderful, I had no idea what a difference it would make. And when I say sleeping through the night I mean in the crib by 9:30 and having to go in and get him at 7 AM. Now, he doesn't sleep all night, but he doesn't cry for one of us to come get him. If he wakes up he can soothe himself back to sleep by sucking his thumb. Anna, on the other hand, is up several times a night. She needs the pacifier to soothe herself, and once she can find it and put it back in herself she may start going longer stretches without crying. Soon she will be old enough that we could try letting her Cry it Out, but Z and I have conflicting opinions on this issue. He is against it. I think all he needs are some ear plugs and he'll change his mind. He's a very light sleeper. And a softie.

Last Thursday the babies turned 16 weeks old. The last month has gone by so fast I can hardly believe it. Next week is their 4 month well check and immunizations. I'm not really looking forward to it, but it's fun to see how much they've grown since the last visit.

Oh, I should put a plug in for the photographer who did my maternity session. Jamie at Epic Photography. The website is www.epic-photos.com. She was really great.

Even Longer Overdue Update

As my maternity leave gets closer and closer to ending I can't help but feel almost every emotion possible. Mostly, however, I am excited. That probably disappoints some people, especially if you don't know me personally. You might say I would feel differently if I had one baby to fuss over, take everywhere, and rock to sleep at night but you would be wrong.

Well, call me on my first day back at work and the story could go a little differently. I would consider it a success if I make it through the day without crying.

The past 3 months have been a complete blur. There have been times when I couldn't remember what I did the day before. Or even what day it was. It has been a blend of babies, diapers, bottles and spit up, and I can tell you honestly that the time has both flown by and crawled, a phenomenon I didn't know could exist.

Here's why we're all better off after I go back to work. Energy. After being away from Alex and Anna I will be energized. Now I know I'll be tired after being at work all day and getting up with babies at night, but that won't last forever and I won't have to worry about baby burn out. I love them with all I have, but I worry that I'm not appreciating the small miracles I witness every day and that makes me sad. I trust my day care provider and have confidence that she will take very good care of them.

An update on the babies:

So far they are sleeping for longer stretches at night. This just started recently and I am very relieved. The only problem is that they are not enjoying the crib as much as their bouncy seats. This is probably due to the fact that Alex is moving around and we found him one night so close to Anna that they were hitting each other with their flailing little fists, producing two very alert and unhappy babies. The second crib will be set up tomorrow.

Also, Alex has doubled his birth weight. He got up to 12 lbs. at the two month check up. Anna is up to 10 lbs.

Alex

Anna

Long Overdue Update

I still am finding it hard to believe that everything has changed so quickly. There's no going back, not that I would ever want to. It's been over two weeks since we all came home from the hospital, and it has been a haze of feeding, diaper changing, crying (me and the babies), and general survival mode.

The first visit to the Pediatrician was less than fun. Anna lost weight (1/2 oz.) and Alex stayed the same. Not necessarily bad things but babies born early need to gain weight steadily. So we powered up the feedings and on the next visit both had put on weight beautifully and have been doing well ever since. Our next appointment is the one month well baby visit in two weeks.

They have been behaving very nicely so far. There are the occasional fussy moments but in general they eat, take a nap, get up to eat, and nap again. I'm very lucky. The worst is when they get off schedule, I know, what baby can't stick to a schedule? Especially at night, when I can be up every 1 1/2 hours on a rotating feeding schedule. It gets better, right? Right!?

Let's see, so far the milestones we have been able to check off:

Umbilical cords falling off - check
First bath - check
First Pediatrician appt (and second and third for weights) - check
First spit up on mommy and daddy - check
First diaper blow out - check

I have found a day care provider after a panicked search. She will watch the babies in her home with two other children, which is what sold me. I don't like the idea of a large day care with lots of kids passing around colds. It is also conveniently located on my way to work. After meeting with her it really hit me that I will eventually have to drop my children off with someone every morning and leave them. I wasn't anticipating how strongly I would feel about that, this is all still so new to me.

I'm trying to take lots of pictures but at this point there is very little awake time so the pics are all pretty much the same. Here is a picture my sister took this past weekend.

And here is another one of me and Alex taking a snooze on the couch.

Twenty Fingers Twenty Toes

Anna.Eugenia.Churilov was born at 7:29 PM on Thursday, June 26, 2008. She weighed 5 lbs. 10 oz. and in perfect health.

Alexander.Eugene.Churilov was born at 8:12 PM on Thursday, June 26, 2008. He weighed 6 lbs. 4 oz. and also came out in great shape.

It was a crazy day. I always thought I would know labor when it was happening but I really had no idea. My water broke early on Thursday morning, around 6:30 AM and I thought it could be something else so I called to make an appointment with the OB at 10:45 instead of going to the hospital. It was confirmed that my membranes ruptured and I was admitted to the hospital around 11:30.

My cervix was dilated to 3 cm at 1:45 but contractions were not strong enough so pitocin was started to speed things up a bit. Meanwhile Alex was behaving very nicely in a head down position but I was prepped for a C-Section just in case.

At 3:30 I was offered an epidural since the anesthesiologist was on the floor with another patient. The pain was not too intense at this point but you never know when those guys come around again, so I said "Yes Please!"

The pitocin was upped every fifteen minutes until at 6:25 PM my cervix was dilated to 9 1/2 cm. A last check on Alex to make sure he was staying vertex and I was wheeled into a delivery OR to start pushing.

I was ready and prepped by 7:00 PM, and a half an hour later my baby girl was in my arms. Alex took a little longer because he had so much room, but he cooperated and got in a good place and 40 minutes later Z cut his cord.

I was in the hospital an extra day due to some hemmoraghing but all came home together and are doing well. As you can imagine it has been chaos, thanks to everyone for their well wishes. I will try to update more often in the coming weeks on our progress.

Proud Papa in Scrubs

Alex and Anna

35 Weeks

As you can see, I'm slowly outgrowing my clothes. It's sad, I really liked this green shirt.
Since I took that little trip last week to the hospital things have been very quiet. I haven't felt a lot of contractions, just one or two here and there.
On Wednesday I went to a meet and greet at the pediatrician's office a friend referred us to. It was a chance to meet the doctors in the practice and ask questions. I really liked them and will be taking the twins there. Thanks for the recommendation Sandy!
Today I had an OB appointment for a baby check. Blood pressure and urine dip were both fine. Total weight gain so far is 48 pounds. My cervix, however, has finally started to make it's move. I am currently 80% effaced and 1 cm. dilated. The doctor and nurse were very excited, but I'm a little nervous. Maybe because I can't believe it could start any day now. I should say I was ok until my sister pointed out that you don't go from 100% effaced down to zero, you start at zero and go to 100%. Probably something I should have known, huh?

Baby A is still head down, but baby B has moved to a breech position. They are very conservative here when it comes to a breech presentation, especially for first time mothers. If he does not move down I will have a c-section. I'm OK with that, as long as both babes come out healthy it doesn't matter to me how they get here.
So I still have some things to do, like pack my bag for the hospital. We have the major things covered: nursery, done; car seats, done; baby clothes washed, done; all bottle paraphenalia sterilized, done. I even remembered to pre-register at the hospital.
Well, I'll keep everyone updated on my progress. Wish me luck!

Four AM Field Trip

A trip to the hospital is a good way to start off my 34th week, don't you think? No, me neither. I started feeling contractions and cramping on Sunday evening, plus I had an upset stomach. The contractions were about 10-12 minutes apart, but some of them were actually a little painful, which is a new thing for me. It went on for about two hours, and after a lot of water and laying down things got quieter and I went to sleep.
Then this morning at 3AM I woke up feeling a small contraction. I went to the bathroom, drank some more water and laid down. I felt another and looked at the clock to see if they could be timed. Then I felt another one pretty quickly and looked at the clock again. Five minutes. OK. I waited, and felt another. Again, five minutes. At this point I don't want to second guess myself so I called the doctor, who told me to go the hospital for some monitoring.
When we got to the hospital at 4:30 I was no longer feeling regular contractions (of course) but they hooked me up to a monitor and checked my cervix just in case. My cervix was closed but I was still having intermittent contractions so they started an IV. About an hour later they gave me a small shot of terbutaline, which is a drug that will calm the uterus down but the side effects are an elevated heart rate and jitteriness. It was not as bad as I expected, and did its job to quiet the contractions, and I was discharged an hour later.
I felt bad for my mom, who came down for lunch on her day off, and we couldn't go out anywhere. We ended up having grilled cheese and tomato soup (on a ridiculously hot day! still delicious), watching TV and chatting.
So far I have been feeling much better. Still drinking water, and now it's time to get back to laying down.

Week 33

I should have clarified in my last post that I was at the end of my 32nd week. My weeks change over on Sundays, so today is the end of my 33rd week.
Anyway, this week was the level II ultrasound to check on the babies. I have no pictures, because both babies have been pretty shy about having their picture taken. Not shy about kicking, bladder-sitting and rib-whacking, however.
The ultrasound went well with no surprises. Baby A is weighing in at 4 lbs. 7 oz. Her heart rate was good, fluid and placenta looked perfect. She is still presenting head down.
Baby B's weight is 4 lbs. 10 oz. His stats were also very nice, and it looks like he's making a move toward head down, but I can't be sure. The perinatologist was not in to review the scans, he had some family emergency, but if there were a problem I would have heard something by now. I have an OB appointment on Tuesday and they will do another ultrasound to check the position.
I also had another Non-Stress Test on Wednesday. Results were fine, both babies managed to stay on the monitors so I didn't have to hold anything in place. My uterus, however, was irritable enough that they checked my cervix just to be safe. Of course it was closed, I think my traitorous uterus is trying to send me a message.
Overall the week was fine. In the beginning of the week I was struggling with heartburn and nausea still, but it seems to have calmed down some. At least the nausea is gone. For now. The babies have been moving so much lately. I thought that the more cramped they got in there the less movement I would feel, but that theory has not panned out. This morning I woke up at 2:30 and could not fall back asleep, that's how much they were moving. The location of the movements has also changed. I'm feeling them much lower now, which makes me wonder if Baby B has shifted from being across my abdomen to either head up or head down. I'm sure there'll be a lot of shifting between now and the final weeks, so I'll have to just wait and see.
This weekend is going to be really hot here on the east coast. Everyone stay cool and drink plenty of water!

Week 32

This week was my thirty-second week, and I have a lot of catching up to do. There were three appointments this week, well, technically two, since one of them occurred last week but I didn't have a chance to post about it.
First was a consultation with one of the Neonatologists at the NICU in the hospital where I'll be delivering. This was basic protocol recommended by my OB, to be prepared if one or both of the babies ended up there. Overall she was very positive about my situation after she reviewed my history. She went over what basic events would land the babies in the NICU, what would happen while they were there, generally, and what 'tests' they need to pass in order to go home or go to the well-baby nursery. The bottom line is that twins born 35 weeks or farther that weigh more then 4.5 lbs. will have a good chance of skipping the NICU if there are no other complications. We are very close. I'll know what the babies weigh this Monday, when I go for my next level II ultrasound.
The next appointment was with the OB for my routine check-up. Blood pressure was good, 120/68, I think. It was good enough to get a comment out of the girl who took it, she was surprised that it would be so good after a holiday. Guess that means I didn't pig out. I did gain a bit more than I expected since my last appointment. Six pounds, which brings total weight gain so far to 43 lbs. This was not commented on by the doctor, so I'll try not to worry about it. I think I am being lulled into a false sense of security by the fact that I don't have any stretch marks yet. It may be a matter of time, but it is enough to distract me from all the weight I've gained. There was a quick ultrasound to see the heartbeats and the positions of the babies. Same as before, baby A is head down and baby B is doing whatever he pleases. This prompted a discussion of which potential mode of delivery I'm in for, and the doctor puts me at a 50% chance of either a c-section or vag delivery. OK, wait and see.
The third appointment was the first of my Non-Stress Tests, which begin weekly until delivery. One monitor for each baby and one for my uterus. The babies were tricky and the nurse had to hold the monitors in place to keep the babies on. They were fine, of course. My uterus, however, was 'irritable.' Wouldn't you be, too? I was sent home with instructions to take it easy and drink more water. Ugh, I'm really getting tired of water. When I was in basic training we would have to drink an entire canteen full of water after PT every morning, as fast as possible. To prove we drank it all we had to hold it upside down over our heads, showing it was empty. I kind of feel like that.
Overall I am doing ok. I have started to get the dreaded swelling in my hands and feet, especially on humid days, and my joints have started to ache, especially in my fingers. Heartburn is waking me up during the night, making Tums a permanent fixture on my nightstand. I feel like I'm getting bigger every day, and more physically tired.
We are very close to having the nursery finished. The crib and the dresser/changing table are set up. I will post pictures when it is more presentable.

Baby Shower Finale

Sisters M and J really went all out for my shower on Sunday. You can see by all the goodies I got in the picture that everyone who came just really blew me away. It was so unexpected (emotionally).

We started out by opening all the gifts and then went to eat. J made enchiladas and spanish rice, M made hot roast beef sandwiches. There was also chips and dips. The cake was two-layer chocolate with chocolate buttercream frosting. Oh it was all so good.

Hippos!

The best baby blankets in the world from Auntie C

Thanks so much D! There's nothing like a brand new mom to make sure you get what you need!

Can you tell we're sisters?

Mom and Me

The cake was delicious!

Thanks to everyone who came, it was a fantastic day.

The Big 3-0

30 weeks. And I'm starting to feel every one of them. So far I have been home on modified bed rest for a whole week. Thankfully they have been able to allow me to work from home on a part-time basis supporting a project, so I haven't gone completely insane. I am proud to say that so far I haven't watched one soap opera, but I have watched at least a hundred or so episodes of Bringing Home Baby, A Baby Story, Amazing Births, Special Delivery and The Baby Diaries. Notice a theme here?

My OB appointment on Tuesday went well.

Blood Pressure was fine. Urine dip was fine. Cervix was fine, again, thank you very much. Total weight gain is at 40 lbs. I asked what the chances were of me avoiding a C-Section because baby A is in the right position right now, even though baby B is not cooperating (men). It turns out the answer is mixed. There are two doctors in the practice who are experienced delivering breech babies. Among the rest of them are doctors who have some experience and doctors who have none at all. So I guess there could be a lot of surprises on the big day. I don't have my heart set either way, both avenues are equally traumatic, I'd just like to know what I'm in for. Luckily for my next appointment in two weeks I'll be seeing one of the two old school doctors, he is also the same doctor who did my Hysterosalpingogram last year (if you are one of my male co-workers I would advise against googling that phrase, for your own sake). We'll have so much to reminisce about.

My sister M gave me a Maternity Support thingy back in February when she came for a visit. It has become my new BFF. When I first saw it I honestly thought I wouldn't need it. Why did I think that? Maybe because I've never been pregnant with twins before and could not have been more naive. I didn't know how to use it so I had to go online, hoping I could find their website for some info. If you do go to the website (this one is safe, male co-workers) you'll see they have step by step pictures and even a video! Turns out I was trying to put it on backwards. The funniest thing is that the pictures of the women look like they were taken in 1974. And I know for a fact that Al Gore hadn't invented the Internet yet. Also the claim that it can't be seen under your clothing is a flat out lie. Unless you're wearing a mu mu or clothes from 1974. Anyway it is comfortable and I feel much better. Thank you so much, M.

Baby Check

Today was another Level II ultrasound, which I have every 4 weeks to check that the babies are growing at the correct rate. Here are the details:

Baby A

• Heart Rate = 144 bpm
• Weight = 3.0 lbs
• Percentile = 60th
• Fluid = perfect
• Placenta = also perfect
• Position = Vertex (head down)

Baby B

• Heart Rate = 138 bpm
• Weight = 3 lbs 4 oz.
• Percentile = I don't remember very well becuase it seemed too high to really believe, it was above 70, I know that
• Fluid = perfect
• Placenta = also perfect
• Position = Transverse, still right across the top of my uterus

Cervix is well behaved, closed and long.

Z went with me to this appointment, he hasn't been to an ultrasound since January, so it was time he went. However, thanks to him and his silly questions we now know that the babies' heads are a bit larger than average. We did not get an actual size becuase the ultrasound tech did not want to make me "nervous." I may be in a good position to get out of a c-section, but at what price, I ask you, what price? You can bet that head size did NOT come from my side of the family. Thanks a bunch, Z.

He may not be joining me for my next appointment, which is scheduled for June 2nd.

Also, a nurse came to the house to go over signs and symptons of preterm labor. She covered the usual topics to look out for, which I have read about in all the books. I don't mind, the more I hear it the better, I learn by repetition. Incidentally, she is the same nurse who will be giving the birthing class I signed up for.

Tomorrow is an O/B appointment, which are now every two weeks.

Wow!

On Wednesday they threw a baby shower for me at work. It was so amazing, I was completely overwhelmed. My team put it together and everyone really went above and beyond for me. Of course, not liking to be the center of attention I did everything I could to subconsiously sabotage the entire thing. It should have been at 2:30 in the afternoon, when a sneaky department meeting was scheduled, and I had been feeling my entire abdomen tighten up all morning about every 13 or 14 minutes. Since I was stopping at the OB's office at lunch to pick up some paperwork I thought I'd ask them about it, just to be safe. They scheduled an appointment for me to come in and by the time I was done I was over in the hospital having a non-stress test.

Everything turned out fine, probably just dehydration or stress, so needless to say I was an hour and a half late for my own shower!

When I got home Z helped me stack up all the gifts on the table and we took some pictures. He was so shocked and surprised by everything, he couldn't believe it. I do work with a lot of great people, I'm pretty lucky!

Here is the cake:

Who's excited? I AM!

And here is the spread at home:

Who loves cake? Z DOES!

Thanks so much to everyone there, it was really pretty awesome! A perfect way to start my maternity leave, which began on Thursday.

Baby Check

The OB appointment on Tuesday went well. At 27 weeks my blood pressure is normal and total weight gain is 33 pounds. There wasn't any reference to my weight gain, positive or negative, so I will assume all is good in that area and plan my next lunch accordingly. Meatball parm at Corropolese? I passed the glucose screening test on April 7, more good news. Hmm, maybe spaghetti? No protein or elevated sugars in my urine, either.
The ultrasound revealed two healthy semi-smushed babies. No pics this time. Baby girl is still head-down, I'm hoping she'll get stuck in that position for the duration. Baby boy is all over the place, and not head down, so we'll have to wait and see what he does. My next peek at them will be May 5th for the next Level II.
So the appointment went smoothly until the inevitable question came up, "So, did you pick a date to stop working?" In my mind the answer goes something like, "When my water breaks?" But I know this is the wrong answer so I hedged. For those of you who don't know, my OB's twin protocol in a healthy no-complications pregnancy is to stop working at 28 weeks and go on modified bed rest. They had a very compelling argument. Yes, not only do I see a doctor at my appointments but also the Perinatal Nurse Coordinator is there, too. Presumably so they can gang up on me in a situation like this. Words like NICU, CPAP, preterm labor, horrible guilt if I do keep working and something goes wrong, did convince me. I am not a doctor, and I'm sure my aunt who was a baby nurse for many years (yes, yes C. I know you had an official title) would agree.
Needless to say I will be stopping work very soon. For those of you who I work with you will find out very soon when that date is, as will my family. The good news is that there is a possibility I can go back to work at 32 weeks if everything is going well. By that time I will be past the dangerous point of going into pre-term labor, but nothing is guaranteed so I'll have to wait and see.

Welcome to Suburban Yuppie Life!

Yes, we finally did it. After much debate and many tears (mine) Z and I decided we would have to BUY A MINI-VAN. It only made sense, having to pull two infant buckets out of a four door sedan and not being able to take anyone else in the car with us ever, plus needing room to put the double stroller/mini tank in comfortably really tipped the scales from a roomy Camry to a Mini Van pretty easily.

I made him do most of the research, he's the car guy, not me. Besides, he had very particular ideas about what he wanted. Those ideas were: White, 8 passenger, 2007 or newer, and finally, Toyota or Honda. You can see how that narrows down the search a bit? My ideas were not as relevant: Anything that doesn't look like a mini van. I was quickly vetoed.

So here she is, a beautiful 2008, white, 8 passenger, gosh-it-really-looks-like-a-mini-van Toyota Sienna. I have to admit, it rides beautifully and it is really fun to have a new car. This post is a little overdue, since we have owned it since Easter, but it has taken a little while to get the picture taken. What with the denial and all.

Double Booked

I came home from work yesterday and found this in the mail!

It may be odd to some people that I'm getting an invitation to my own baby shower, but I love it. And it would be kind of awkward to have a surprise shower with only five or six people, my social circle being so huge and all.

My sister M. did a great job on the invitation, it's so pretty! Unless she had help, in which case everyone involved has great taste.
I'm so excited! I can't wait.

So I updated my pocket calendar with the date. That's right, no palm pilot. And at work today I called the hospital because I never received confirmation for the Birth Class I signed up for. I sent in a registration form and a check which was cashed but I have yet to recieve any informational packet, as promised on the sign-up sheet. What do I find out when I confirmed my class? That's right, the all day Birth Class I signed up for at the hospital is scheduled for May 17th. From 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. And there really is no way to change the dates, since they are held once a month, there is no class in April and the next class would be June 21st, cutting it a little too close for me.

All was not lost, I ended up calling M. and she said she could change it to Sunday morning instead, and that it really wasn't a problem, she'd just call everyone (like I said, 5 or 6 people) and update them all.

Something tells me this is only the beginning of the end of my free schedule. Two small people are going to fill it up quickly.

Wow. This week I am 25 weeks into the pregnancy. As I'm typing this the babies are kicking like crazy!

On Monday I had a level II ultrasound to measure all baby parts. This was my second, I previously went four weeks before for the same scan. The twin protocol at my OB is for a level II u/s every four weeks after the 21st week to make sure the babies are growing at the same rate.

This time Baby Girl (A) measured 1 lb. 13 oz. and Baby Boy (B) measured 1 lb. 14 oz. Each are up almost a whole pound in four weeks!

Heartrates were normal and all pieces measured right on target. The doctor wanted to get a 4D shot of both babies but Baby Boy was not cooperative and would not turn around. He did get a good shot of Baby Girl.
Those are her hands up around her head. Right now she is head down, I'm hoping she stays that way. Baby Boy is transverse with his head on my upper left side and feet on my upper right. (Is that considered transverse? Guess I should look that up!)

I have another level II in 4 weeks, this time I'm getting Z to go with me so he can see them. He hasn't been to an ultrasound since we were still at Mainline Fertility in mid-January. Has it been that long?

Here are some traditional ultrasound profiles of both babes from the scan.

This is Baby Boy, flexing his muscles for the camera!

And here is Baby Girl.

Another milestone this week was the Glucose Screening Test. This was pretty important since my mom had four very large babies and went on to have Diabetes later in life. I haven't gotten the results back yet but I should be fine, since both sisters that are moms tested just fine for my nieces and nephew.

My next OB appointment is April 22nd (Earth Day!). I'll be 27 weeks and hopefully able to get a difinitive opinion on whether they think I should stop working and go on modified bed rest. I'm planning on working as long as I can, barring any minor complications. So far the limitation of my physical activities has consisted of taking the elevator at work instead of the stairs (one flight) and getting a parking pass so I can park in Visitor Parking, close to the entrance.
We'll see how things go.