Good Job Babies-Keep It Up!!!

Today's appointment went pretty well, and it was a long one! I had to drink the super sweet orange drink for the gestational diabetes test as soon as I got there.  It was so sweet it burned the back of my throat! I am hoping it comes back okay because I would really like to avoid the three hour test! Then a quick weight and blood pressure check.  I gained a good amount of weight-yea! Not too many people are happy about gaining weight every week, but I know it's super important to pack it on now before I am unable to eat a lot.  I did try to eat more this week and it was difficult, so I am sure as I grow it'll get worse. I did not ask about my fundal height, so I'll have to get that info next week.  The nurse did say that she could see where they were all laying by looking at my belly-mostly on my left side.  I guess that's why I haven't been feeling as much kicking in my upper right area!

We had to wait for a while before our ultrasound because earlier in the morning one of their machines was not working.  Finally, they called us back.  I always hold my breath when they scan over and check where all the babies are. I think it goes back to the beginning when you first start seeing the heartbeat-I am still looking for that heartbeat and movement. So our little girl is still hanging out on the bottom, but kind of tucked away in the bottom right corner now.  Baby B is hanging out in the middle to left and Baby C is way over on my left side.  I had to scoot over closer to the ultrasound tech when she did measurements for him because he was so far on that side.  That explains all the kicking when I lay on my left side all day! Now for the details.

Baby A, our girl, weighs about 1 lb 15 oz.  She was fairly cooperative during all the measurements, but was curled up a lot of the time.  We saw her moving her eyeball around a few times and she opened her mouth-I see a trend here since she did that a couple times now!

Baby B, twin boy, is the one with all the fluid.  The fluid level was actually under 8 again this week, and we are hoping it stays there! He weighs about 1 lb 11 oz. now.  He was moving a lot, which is typical for him.  He likes to stretch out in all his fluid.  I hope he enjoys it while he can since they are losing space quickly in there! He is our boy with the 2 vessel cord, but he had adequate growth too.  He had his arm up by his face a lot during this ultrasound, so hopefully next week he'll be a little less shy!

Baby C, other twin boy, usually has a lot less fluid than his brother.  They measured it around 5 this time too, so again we are hoping it stays there and doesn't go down.  He weighs about 1 lb 12 oz.  It's really good that he is about the same size as his brother.  He was facing away from us during the ultrasound, but she was able to get most of the measurements.  He is the one I feel the most during the mornings right after I eat breakfast, but he was a bit calmer towards the end of the ultrasound. 

I love being able to see them once a week, although it's not always in this amount of detail.  I know I've said it before, but I would be a wreck if I didn't get to see them so much.  It's just reassuring to know they are all okay in there! It helps calm my nerves a lot, at least until around Sunday! Next week I think we start the Biophysical Profiles or the Non-stress tests, so that'll be interesting. 

Our doctor was really pleased with their growth and where we are at for 25 weeks.  My cervix is still long and closed, but I think the measurement was a little under 3 (it was hard to see the screen for that one).  He seemed happy with that though.  Dr. K was actually pretty funny today, but he is usually goofier when Brad is with me at appointments-must be a guy thing! He mentioned that someone from the show, A Baby Story, called him looking for patients with multiples.  He asked if we would be interested. Now, Brad and I are not usually the type that would enjoy sharing our lives with complete strangers on T.V., but we didn't say no-yet.  We said that we would like some more details and find out if we get any compensation.  Keep in mind I am not going to be getting paid for the entire time I am off from work! We'll see.  We probably won't end up doing it, but it would be nice to have the footage of the birth since otherwise we won't see anything. Dr. K didn't seem like he really wanted to do it, but said he would if we wanted to.

So less than 3 weeks until our next goal of 28 weeks! I hope it goes by quickly!! After that, we will aim for 32 weeks.  I found out today that our doctor is going to Las Vegas during my 30th week, so I am telling the babies that week is not a choice!! So, let's hope for quick and cooler days (I love Fall and can't wait until summer is over)! Thanks for reading and checking in on our lives-we appreciate all your support and prayers! One of these days I will venture down to the basement so I can post some pictures of the babies and of my ever-growing belly (stretch marks and all)!

By the way-I seemed to have lost my spellcheck button on this screen, so I apologize for any typos!

25 Weeks

Today is 25 weeks and one week closer to our goal!! Our ultimate goal is still 28 weeks-35 weeks. So, 3-10 weeks and we will be parents (hopefully 5 weeks or more). Sometimes it seems so close and other times it seems sooo far away! I can't wait until I can be a bit more excited instead of scared of them coming too soon.

My belly button hurts again!!! It hurt a lot a while back when I first started showing and then it felt better. The last 2 days I can't even brush up against it (which happens often since I seem to forget that I have a big belly now), without being in pain. I am hoping that means that I am just growing quickly and that the babies are going through a growth spurt! Wishful thinking, I know.

I will update again on Thursday or Friday, depending on how tired I am when we get back from our appointment. I get pretty worn out now on my weekly outing! Brad is going with me this week since it is our growth scan appointment. Fingers and toes crossed on Thursday please!!! :)

Random Thoughts and Events

So tomorrow will be 25 weeks-3 weeks to go until the "safety zone." I have been spending most of my time on our couch, which I should be getting used to by now. I would have started back at school today for an Institute Day. I have to admit, I was a little bit sad this morning when I thought about school. It will still be there when I am ready to go back, but I enjoy the beginning of the school year-even though it is the busiest time! I guess that's part of what I am missing; being busy would make time go by faster. I would give anything for a time machine right now!

I finally passed up my contraction threshold of 4 this weekend. I had 4 Friday morning, then after re-monitoring it went down to 2. Saturday morning I had 5 and then 2. The scariest part is that I didn't feel most of them. On Thursday, the company that does the monitoring wanted to change my call backs to only Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings. That means I would save my data from the evenings until after I monitor the next morning. And for the weekend, I wouldn't send anything from Friday evening until Monday morning! At first I said fine, but then called them back later and said that I wasn't comfortable with that plan. I guess if I recognized every contraction I had, then it would be fine because I would be able to tell if they were increasing. But the fact that I usually only feel a couple during monitoring, it just didn't seem right to not send in my data. I think it was a good decision considering how many I had over the weekend! I am sure Brad and I will be making a trip to L & D sometime soon if I can't slow them down.

I was worried today because I didn't feel one of my little guys as much today. Not sure if he was sleeping every time I was paying attention, if his fluid level is higher again, or the other numerous possibilities. I had a Popsicle and put on on Sister Hazel, which made him kick me multiple times. I am still not sure if that means he likes it or hates it, but I am going to keep putting it on if I don't feel him! It is getting more difficult to tell who is moving now because they are longer. I am anxious to see where they are all hanging out at this week so I can hopefully figure it out better!

I have stayed off of Google for a few days now! I am trying to avoid search engines as much as possible to hopefully lower my stress level-maybe I'll resemble a normal person again someday soon. I like to have information (Information is power), but it gets too overwhelming and draining to read about what can go wrong. So, I am trying to stay positive, yet cautious still. While making Baby B dance/kick me to make the music stop, I found one of my top 3 favorite Sister Hazel songs. I listened to this song a lot on my way to my fertility appointments, so I figured it can't hurt to listen to it again to help get through this time. I was reading another blog (Carrie), and she had put some YouTube videos up of songs-so I kind of stole this idea from her. But the song choice is mine! I apparently can't figure out how to get the actual video to post, so if you want to listen you'll have to use the link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHBaphWI0NY

Thursday is our next appointment and we'll get to see how much the babies have grown-hopefully they're huge!!!

Can't we speed this ride up somehow??

Today's appointment went pretty well, especially for being 24 weeks. My cervix is holding well around the same as it has been, which pleased my doctor. He was a bit worried about funneling, but it held pretty strong. Luckily, my contractions have stayed at 3 or less during my monitoring which I hope continues. He said that if I came into the hospital in labor, they would want me to have less than 4 an hour before they would send me home. I am hoping I won't have to be on medication or in for monitoring, but I assume it will happen eventually.

The babies all had good heartbeats and were stretching out a bit during the ultrasound. Baby A and B are both hanging out on the right side of me (which might explain the stretch marks I have on that side of my belly). Baby C is still over on the left. Baby A still has normal fluid levels; our little one that follows the rules and expectations-for now! The largest pocket for Baby B was in the 7 range, but close to 8. That means it did not get worse!! She measured Baby C in the 5-6 range, but I am pretty sure she did not measure from the membrane again. I tried to play stupid so she would measure again, but no such luck. When the doctor came in, I mentioned that it seemed like Baby B's fluid had gone down a bit. He said that it was really hard to measure the twins because of how thin the membrane is. I am still happy that it has not gotten any worse, even if the measurements aren't perfect.

I am still measuring 40 weeks and have actually lost a pound. So it looks like I will be eating as much as I can this week. I think part of my problem is that I am afraid to eat later in the evening because of heartburn and acid reflux. I guess I will just try to eat more during the day! My doctor didn't seem too worried about it at this point, but I will try to stuff as much in as I can.

I asked him what our ultimate goal is still and he is still going for 35 weeks. He said if we make it to that point, then he'll schedule a C-section. That seems so far away, but close at the same time! 11 weeks more weeks is all I have to do, but it isn't until the first week of November. Being on bed rest does not make the days go by any faster either! I just keep thinking about the cooler weather coming and how they'll be here soon. In a few months we will have babies in this world for everyone to enjoy, not just me feeling them everyday. It might be a little hard to give that up, but I can't wait for them to be here and be healthy. Brad is not so optimistic about me making it to 35 weeks because of the amount of complaining I have done the past week. I was having some ligament pain, which made it harder to move around. I am sure I will be doing a lot of complaining about being uncomfortable and worried for the remainder of this pregnancy. I think I did pretty darn good about not complaining too much up to this point though! I wish we could trade places for a day-then he would understand more of where I am coming from I think. He has really been great about doing things for me and around the house though-I couldn't ask for anyone better to go through this with!

I think Google should be illegal for pregnant women-who would like to sign my petition?? I was pulling up some information I had saved about Myotonic Dystrophy to give to my doctor and came across some scary info. Apparently, polyhydramnios is almost always present when the congenital form of DM is going on with pregnancy. Even though we did PGD, it has come out that identical twins do not always have identical DNA due to mutations and extra copies. So, I totally freaked myself out last night looking for information on statistics, but couldn't find much. I mentioned it to Dr. K today and he said it would be a very small chance of having one twin with the congenital form; that their DNA is usually the same or very similar. He believes that the fluid difference is due to the TTTS more than anything else. I am praying that he is right. We went through so much to have healthy babies; I would feel like we failed our babies if one ends up with the disease. He is moving a lot though, which would not fit the fetal symptoms of congential DM. So, for now I will try to put that out of my mind and pray for equal levels each week!

Next Thursday is our growth scan and my gestational diabetes test. I can't wait to see how big they really are at this point-it will make it a lot more real again when we talk weight estimates! I hope I pass the GD test because I don't know how I would restrict my foods and still be able to eat enough to gain weight!

Keep thinking good thoughts and thanks for all your support! We are blessed to have such wonderful family and friends in our lives.

Milestone One

Today marks 24 weeks and possible viability for the babies if they came now. I hope this is the first of many milestones for the remainder of the pregnancy! Every week will make me feel better now, but I think I am going to designate the major milestones at 26, 28, 30, 32, and 34 weeks. If for some reason we make it to 34 weeks I will have a major celebration and treat each day as a milestone! It is crazy to think that the babies could be here within 4-10 weeks, (hopefully not any sooner than that). I am still scared and too cautious to get my hopes up, but we are getting closer to the "safe daydreaming" point. We still have things in boxes and with tags on, but I think I might be comfortable enough at 28 weeks to start opening and organizing things. We'll see!

I am still monitoring contractions twice a day and have not gone above the threshold of 4 yet. I have had 3 a few times, some of which I feel and some I don't. I am getting better about recognizing real contractions versus the "irritable uterus" tightening. They all still scare me though. I am not sure how strict my bed rest should be at this point, but I have been pretty good about just laying on the couch all day for the past week. I sit up to eat, get up to go to the bathroom, let the dog out, and shower. Whenever I am up or sitting though, I feel more contractions. Maybe this bed rest thing really works! My house is a mess and I would love to get things done around here, but I know these babies are more important than a clean house. Brad has been great about keeping up with things like the dishes, carries my laundry down for me, and is just all around helpful with what I need. I especially like when he is home and can help me get up from the couch. Last night he helped me and I was able to get from a laying position to standing without stopping-that hasn't happened for months!!

Those of you who know me well, know my love for the band Sister Hazel. They have a CD coming out today, which I didn't pre-order since I figured I would just run out and buy it-silly me! They had all the tracks on-line yesterday, so I was listening to it while on the computer. Well, I had all 3 babies kicking around in me. I am not sure if that means they liked it or hated it. I guess we'll see when they are here! Last night I played some Tool songs (Brad's favorite band), and they didn't move at all. I might have to experiment a little more with music and movement!

I have an appointment tomorrow for a fluid and cervical check-let's hope for regular fluid (or fluid levels that aren't worse) and a long, hard, closed cervix! Cross those fingers and toes people!

Still in Limbo

Today was another appointment for fluid and cervical checks. Baby A was in normal fluid at 5.5. Baby B was still in a large amount; the largest pocket was a little over 9. He was quite acrobatic in that large amount and was doing a headstand during the beginning of the ultrasound! Baby C was still in less fluid, but the tech was able to find a pocket around 5. I am a little leery when they are measuring baby C now just because of what happened before with the measurements being off. He was upside down this time, so hopefully it was a more accurate measurement. Dr. K was able to see a normal sized bladder, which is a good sign for now. Again, we will keep checking every week to see if it progresses. I am so glad that it didn't get worse over this week, and I'm going to keep drinking the high protein shakes and rest as much as I can.

My cervix is about the same as before-first measurement was about 3.3 and the second was 2.9. He didn't say anything about it being shorter, so I am not going to worry about it for now. He did say that he will do cervical checks at our next 2 appointments, but not after that since we'll be monitoring then. That makes me nervous and I may beg him to check at each appointment anyway. Who would really want cervical checks? Just me, for peace of mind I suppose!

I have been given the green light to try Prilosec for the heartburn/acid reflux. What really scares me is that I am measuring 40 weeks now and the nurse said I still have a few inches up top to go! I won't be able to eat anything then!!! Knowing what I know now, I think having 1 baby at a time would have been a lot easier, but probably a bit more boring. Brad and I don't tend to take the simple route, but I guess in the long run it'll be easier to be pregnant just one time. Still mortified when I think of where these babies are going to go in a few weeks and how my body will look!

As for the contraction monitoring, my limit for contractions for now is 4 in an hour. Once that happens, they'll have me monitor again for another hour. If I am still contracting, I will then have to go in to be checked out at the hospital. If the last couple days are any indication, I think that'll happen fairly soon. But at least I am not having to run to the hospital every day right now!

We set up four more appointments, so I have the next 6 appointments set up. I will be 29 weeks then!! Crazy to think that it really isn't that far away, even though the days are dragging by. Dr. K said the next 5 weeks are really crucial in order to get to the all important 28 weeks. I just hope everything keeps cooperating! I will continue to take it one day and week at a time. Hopefully it'll fly by and they'll be here when it's cold out! I can't wait for both things-cold weather and babies at a safe time.

Mini Update

I figured I would post a quick update before tomorrow's appointment in order to prevent a super long post again! I am 23 weeks today-so close to viability! 24 weeks is the bare minimum for a chance of viability, so only one more week. I feel like a little kid waiting for Christmas-so close, but it feels so far away still! I will allow myself to relax just a bit and maybe start to get more excited. My thoughts have been focused on what could go wrong that I don't think I have let myself really enjoy this yet. I can't wait until we are at an even safer point and I can start daydreaming about what they'll look like and how our lives are going to change for the better (and crazier).

So while waiting for viability, I have been resting on the couch as much as possible. Last Thursday the uterine home contraction monitor nurse came out to teach me how to use the machine. It's really easy and I am so glad my insurance companies are covering it. It is helping me learn when I am having real contractions-even though I don't always identify them. We will see what my doctor says about it tomorrow. I monitor for an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening. Usually, one of the sessions I will just have "irritability" or 1-2 contractions and then the other session not have anything going on. The most I have had in an hour has been 3. The company always calls after they receive the info from the transmitter, so it's nice to know what is really going on in the ever-growing belly!

I believe I have now felt all the babies move at this point. It is sometimes hard to tell who it is in certain areas because they are so close to each other. It is nice to feel things though-a little reassurance in between appointments. Brad has also been able to feel both of the boys, although he was a bit surprised that the kicks weren't stronger. It was a nice reality check though to actually feel them instead of just seeing them on an ultrasound screen.

I am worried about tomorrow's appointment, of course. I am so scared that the TTTS will have progressed further and require treatment. I am glad there are things they can try to save them from the complications, but I was really hoping we wouldn't have to use them. So, I have been chugging the high protein drinks and resting more in hopes of helping the fluid levels to even out. I would be very relieved tomorrow if baby C was still in the normal fluid range and baby B either stays the same or drops his fluid level. If the levels are worse, we will deal with it like we have with everything else that has happened in our lives. I just want them to be okay. I am hoping our little girl will continue her trend and be completely fine tomorrow too! We'll see!

Hopefully I haven't grown an obnoxious amount in the past week-I am going to be up past the 40 week mark pretty soon! We should start taking bets on how big I will get before I deliver!

Finally, a bit about work. I received my back to school letters and schedule in the mail yesterday. It is going to be very weird to not go back in two weeks with everyone else. I feel like I am going to miss out on a lot of things, but there are a few things I won't miss. We don't have air conditioning in our classrooms, so I definitely won't miss sweating through the first few weeks of school! I will keep in touch with my co-workers, so I am sure they will fill me in on the good stories and not so good stories. It just won't be the same.

So, there's my pregnant life up through today. Please think good thoughts tomorrow morning for us!

Not again...

Today was another appointment for a cervical and fluid check. Well, my cervix is still cooperating nicely! It's closed and still around 3.5, so let's hope it stays there!

The fluid levels are a different story. Baby A, our girl, has a perfect amount of fluid around 6.5. Baby B has even more than he did last week-it's now about 9.5. Unfortunately still above the normal level range of 3-8. The first time the ultrasound tech measured baby C, she said his level was around 7. I asked her if she was sure and she said that she would double check and measure it again. She was able to see the membrane better this time and the measurement was now around 3.5. I actually think that seems more accurate for what it was last week too, so I am going to have to stay on top of them and make sure they measure from the membrane to the bottom. Dr. K came in and checked my cervix and then checked the fluids too. It is quite obvious that baby B has more space and fluid than baby C, but they were growing at the same rate and baby C has enough fluid to move around-he is usually really active during our ultrasounds. So now we are going to continue our close watch of the fluid levels and our twin boys. I am hoping that since we have monitoring them for TTTS for a little over a month now, and not too much has changed or at least it's been slow changes, that we can get to a safe point with the TTTS staying mild. Usually the TTTS would have gotten significantly worse within this time if it was going to end up in a more serious stage, but we do not always follow the normal trends-obviously!

Everything else was good-blood pressure, weight, measuring 39 weeks now. I did mention our Saturday night visit to L & D, including the fact that the monitor didn't pick up any contractions. Dr. K said that he was going to try to get some home uterine monitoring for me and that if I do have contractions/cramping that it could quickly change my good cervical length. I would feel a lot better having the monitoring so I know when I need to worry. Since I am not familiar with what contractions really feel like, I am worried that I am going to miss something serious. The company already called me today to get some more information and is going to contact my insurance companies. She said that the insurance companies that I have work with this company, so coverage shouldn't be a problem. Let's hope it's actually going to be this easy!

So we are continuing to watch the babies closely to see if they develop more serious signs of TTTS and watch me for contractions. Please keep all your fingers and toes crossed! Less than 2 weeks before the possible viable 24 weeks and 6 weeks until the all important 28 weeks! Each day is a milestone at this point-I can't wait until I can take a deep breath and relax, at least a little bit!

Shower Fun!

Sunday was our one baby shower that we are having. My mom and Brad's mom put a lot of effort into it-and it showed! We had around 60 guests attend and we couldn't be more grateful. It was wonderful to see some old friends and family that we don't see very often, although I wish we had had more time to talk and catch up. We ate and then started opening the massive piles of gifts. I cannot get over how generous people were. My job for this week is to write out all the thank you cards and find places for all the gifts! I am still not comfortable taking off tags on anything yet; it's still a little too early for that. Although, tomorrow is 22 weeks, so we are getting closer!

Brad started painting the future nursery today. I had finally decided on the green that I thought would work the best, but we ended up picking a different one at Home Depot because their scanner/color matcher thing was broken. I peeked in the room today and it looks weird since I am used to it being plain white! It needs another coat and then I think it'll look even better once he takes off the painter's tape. I don't think he'd be willing to paint it again, so I am sure I will love the color! :)

We had a fun little trip Saturday night to L & D because I was having tightening all day that wouldn't let up. I was getting more worried as the day and night went on, so finally we decided we should go. I didn't want to go and have it be nothing or have it be something and have to stay in the hospital. But once I thought about it more, I would rather look like a paranoid fool (which I am getting used to), than ignore it and have something serious wrong and lose the babies. Luckily, I was fine. They put the contraction monitor on me, and I didn't have any tightening for about 30 minutes-of course! When I did feel one, we noted the time and told the nurse next time she came in-it didn't show up on the monitor at all. The resident came in and checked my cervix-still long and closed. So, at least whatever I was feeling was not impacting my cervix or strong enough to show up on the monitor. She also did a quick ultrasound on the babies to check them. Babies A and B were super active, but baby C was sleeping through the kicks his brother was giving him. His heart was going strong, but it took a little while before he finally moved-way to freak me out little boy! So, after 4 hours of driving and hospital time, we crawled into bed feeling relieved, but knowing Sunday was going to be rough with little sleep!

Our next appointment is Wednesday for a quickie cervix and fluid check-keep fingers and toes crossed for even levels and a closed cervix!