Tired- end of 31 weeks

The last few days are really testing me. I've had lots of contractions. They are waking me up at night now and are getting stronger. I've got the round ligament pain back at night again. I haven't slept for more than a 1/2 hr for the past few days. I'm either up to pee or with a contraction. It's so hard to know when to go to the hospital. Thursday, I was at a church meeting and I was having contractions every 10 mins that went to every 5 mins. I went home and laid down and they dwindled off. Last night however they were all over the place. I was having strong one as well as smaller ones in between the strong ones and they didn't let up when I laid down. I had them all night. I've been having sharp pain in my belly button...it literally feels like my belly button skin is ripping from the inside. I can't get relief from it. I'm having a lot of rib pain again as well. I did take a tylenol PM at 5 am this morning and I was able to sleep until about 7. That was much needed. I've noticed all the sudden that I have all these new veins in my feet. Where did they come from? They are every where! I told Nick that I'm tired of being pregnant now. To think that I'm 2 months away from my 40 week due date is nuts. There is no way! lol I'm praying this is just one of those stretching phases and I feel better soon. At this point I can't stand without a contraction, bumps in the car are painful and I think the weight of my belly is really getting to me. Hopefully the babies are gaining what they need to to be healthy. These babies got at least 2 more weeks to stay put. I was thinking about it last night and it really has been a miracle that I've been able to carry double the weight of a normal pregnancy this long. Two normal weight babies, two placentas, two sacs full of amniotic fluid, two times the blood volume throughout my body plus the fluid gain. That's pretty amazing for a small framed 100lb body. God really blessed me through this pregnancy with being able to handle it. I honestly didn't know if I'd make it to 32 weeks. It was a big sacrifice for us financially for me to stop working but I know that was huge as far as me getting the rest I need and being able to maintain my health. I wouldn't have been able to work for some time now anyhow but I think even those early months were crucial for me to be able to take it easy.

Kicks! It's crazy how strong these little boogers are getting. I've noticed they seem to kick at the same time now so hopefully they are on a similar wake/sleep schedule. There is not as much room as there used to be and they are popping out every where and kicking hard enough to hurt. 

20 Things I Took for Granted b4 Pregnancy (in no particular order)

1. Sleep - more than a 1/2 hour at a time
   
2. Dressing - while standing and not falling
   
3. Bending - and actually reaching the object I dropped
   
4. Breathing - a full lung full
   
5. Hugging - my husband and feeling his belly instead of mine
   
6. Standing - without contractions
   
7. Sitting - without an entourage of pillows
   
8. Baths - with hot water and the ability to get in and out of the tub
   
9. Eye contact - with people without the constant gaze at my belly
   
10. Pedicures - in which I can actually reach my own feet
    
11. Belly button - that goes in instead of out
    
12. Lunch meat - the cold kind
    
13. Clothes - the ones that fit before the belly
    
14. Restasis - my dry eye medicine
    
15. Thighs - that supported my body and were in plain sight
    
16. Heels - and the balance to wear them
    
17. Grease & Tomato sauce - late at night with no heartburn
    
18. Back - laying on it while breathing and without pain
    
19. Chillin - because I want to not because I have to
    
20. Pee - the ability to hold it in general especially while laughing
    

Docs Appt Mar 28, 2008-30 weeks

Protein levels were good today but my blood pressure was up. Instead of my normal 100/70 it was 120/90. She asked me if I had a headache today and I did but I hadn't thought much of it. I just assume it's allergies. She told me to drink more water and I know I need to but it's hard for me to do. I'm not a big drinker and I just don't think about it. I GAINED AL LOT this time! I weighed 124. I seriously think Easter had a lot to do with it. I'm been eating lots of left overs and I ate a lot of food at mom and dads. So I gained 5lbs in 2 weeks! That kinda explains why I feel so big and awkward these last 2 weeks...........because I AM! The nurse said I'm still small and under average. When I think about the nurse telling me to gain 50lbs I realize that I'm all baby and belly weight. My belly top to bottom measured 32 centimeters which she said was good. It's 2-4 more for twins and mine was 2 more than normal. I'm feeling like the babies are putting a ton of pressure on me very low and they are. They said they were low the last time and this time they checked my cervix again. My cervix is still good to go so the babies are just low and getting heavier. At the point the girl is kicking like crazy. She's making up for lost time. Their kicks are getting painful now. His in my ribs aren't as bad as hers are down low. She keeps kicking a nerve that sends pain down my left leg and the weight is causing my left leg to go numb. Sometime she kicks me in my bladder and guts which makes me jumps and hurts. For some reason my left side is tender. When I lay on my side with my legs bent, she seems to get stuck in the crease of my leg. They told me when I had my ultrasounds about how low the babies can be and I'm feeling it now. They are getting stronger for sure! I'm so tired!!!!!!!!! I am up at least every hour and sometimes every 1/2 hour peeing. It's getting harder and harder to get in and out of bed and I'm feeling dizzy mostly at night. I ran into the edge of the door the other night and scared myself. lol I experienced my first leg cramp in my calf. OUCH...........the worst part is not being able to reach it to massage it out. lol I asked the doc is it can make your legs sore for a few days and she said she had that happen too. My calf turned into a ball. The midwife that I saw today complimented me once again on having no stretch marks. It is pretty amazing. I don't want to hold my breath but my skin has done some pretty amazing stretching. I'm debating on getting another massage. My mid back had really been achy but I'm not sure about that experience again. :) I've had swelling in my right ankle mostly but not much considering and the docs said I'm doing really well with not gaining weight and fluid other than my belly.

Almost 30 weeks...

Feeling very huge, tired, out of breath and uncomfortable. lol I'm getting to the point of being embarrassed to go out. People stare, and people that know me get the "YOU'RE HUGE" shocked look on their face. At this point, I really don't wanna hear how big I am.......I certainly FEEL it. I don't want to imagine how much bigger I'm gonna get...it actually scares me. I'm thankful I'm all belly but it certainly makes it hard to hide. :) Two babies are no joke!

Ultrasound 29 weeks

We have good news again! Babies look great. They now are 3lbs each! She looked at my cervix and said it's still in good shape as well! So far the contractions aren't doing anything which is good. She said it's going to be very hard for me to tell when to go to the hospital. She said if I'm at all worried about it go...but I'm going to be having more than 4 an hour at this point. The other great news is at this point if the babies are born they won't have any long lasting health problems from being premature. :) She said the 30 week mark is another milestone that means the babies are likely to do very well if born. They would be in the NICU but the outcomes would be very good. She said if I go into labor anytime after 34 weeks, they won't stop it because the outcomes are even better. She said if I don't go into labor before 38 weeks (YIKES) they would do a c-section then and not allow it to go any further. She said anything past 38 becomes high risk for still birth just like anything beyond 42 weeks with a single baby becomes high risk. She said if I have any symptoms other then contractions to go to the hospital. She also said starting at 32 weeks the doctors with put me on a monitor every 2 weeks to check the stress on the babies and monitor their heart rates. She said I look great and it's a good sign that I'm not gaining any other weight other than my belly, she said that will make things easier for me. She said some women are huge by this time. Nick asked what happens if I get completely miserable, and she said SHE WILL. lol She said I could take tylenol PM to help me sleep at night and it's just something you've gotta get through. As far as the babies positions....they are STILL the same. Boy is very head down, very low and the girl is head up. The doctor said that they are pretty comfortable and most likely will stay in those positions. She said the boy as low as he is won't move but the girl still could although most likely not. She's sitting on his head and his feet were on her head. They are pretty tangled up in there at this point as far as their limbs. It's hard to tell who's arms are who's. I did confirm that it is the boys butt that keeps popping out from under my ribs and sticking out my side. It hurts! When I push it back in he kicks. lol Her head pops out from under my ribs on the other side. I can't imagine them getting bigger. They are going to be poking out everywhere! Not many pictures this time....she took some heart and belly shots of them together but most of the shots are very abstract at this point. The feet and legs are so much bigger and thicker then last time but they move so much it's hard to catch any good shots. We could see them practicing their breathing by their chests inflating with the amniotic fluid. Pretty cool. She still has her hands up at her face and was opening and closing her mouth. He has his head down toward my back so we couldn't see his face at all this time.

The doctor got this shot of the girl. It was so cool because she was blinking her eyes. It's her head sideways and you can see her left eye open in this shot.

Follow up

Good news, yesterday my blood pressure and protein levels were normal. :) My blood pressure has consistently been 110/70. Now we're anxious for the ultrasound tomorrow. :)

Docs Appt Mar 14, 2008 & test results

I went to the doctor for my normal 2 week check up. I was supposed to have the new female doctor but she got backed up and I ended up having another female doc who I hadn't heard of. She was really nice though. Dr Hassinger. I gained another lb since the last visit so I'm now up to 119. I thought that was pretty good being that I was sick. Blood pressure was still good 110/70. It's been that 5 or 6 times in a row she said. The babies heartbeats were good. Boys was 145 and girls was lower than his this time at 142. One thing is I had a little bit of protein in my urine which they want to make sure is not an early sign of Preeclampsia. We certainly don't want that, especially this early on. The doctor said she isn't too worried though because my blood pressure was still good and stable so I just need to go in Monday and have them test urine and blood pressure again. I asked how my diabetes and anemia tests went and she said the diabetes test was good but that I was a little anemic so she's asking me to take additional iron along with a stool softener and to try to eat more red meat. It kinda explains my craving for beets and broccoli salad since both are high in iron. How awesome is it that your body knows this stuff?

I told her about my contractions and told her that I had called the doc on call when I was having them every 10 mins and told her that he said they weren't real contractions unless they hurt regardless if I was pregnant with twins or not. She about had a fit. She said I absolutely should have come into labor hall and had a monitor check them out and I should have been examined. I told her I was frustrated because I was told to call if they were frequent regardless of if they hurt or not and then when I did, I was told it was nothing. She said she would certainly talk to that doctor and make sure they are all on the same page. She said it IS different if you're pregnant with twins and they need to be able to catch preterm labor as soon as possible. She said, even if it is nothing, it's better to come in and make sure. She said if they happens again, if any doctor tells you to wait, just tell them you're going to labor hall to be sure and GO. She asked when I was having the contractions and I told her pretty much whenever I'm on my feet for any length of time and it doesn't have to be long. Yesterday I walked around the house once and the contractions started. I sat down and drank water and they slowed down again. She said I pretty much need to be a couch potato from here on out. It's okay to get up and move around for your circulation but then make sure you sit back down and rest. She said she wanted to check my cervix before going into a weekend to make sure nothing was happening. In 2 secs she told me my cervix is still closed and she thinks its about 2 inches long yet which is good. She said she felt a head that was very low which explains why I feel the need to pee constantly but that it was okay and nothing to be concerned about. The boys head and the girls feet have been low for awhile now. When I get my ultrasound Wednesday, they will take a measurement of my cervix and we'll see how these babies are laying. They are becoming more overlapped now which makes things harder to see.

There is one thing I forgot to mention before that I learned in the breast feeding class. I keep thinking about it because it's amazing. She was talking about how they are trying to encourage skin to skin time before breast feeding. (baby lays bare chest on mom's bare chest) I remember hearing about this from our friends that had the premature baby. She said in the NICU they use this skin to skin technique with the babies to help regulate the babies body temp since premature babies have trouble maintaining their temperature. They use fathers and mothers for bonding experiences. This is the cool part, a mother's body temperature will change in order to regulate the babies temperature. So, if the baby is cold, when put skin to skin the mother's temperature will go above normal to warm the baby. In the same way, when placed skin to skin, if the baby is overheated the mother's temperature will drop below normal to cool her baby. How awesome is that? The NICU especially encourages this skin to skin contact for emotional bonding and for the babies physical needs. The father can't do the same thing but they still encourage the fathers to participate for premature babies for bonding and even the father's normal temperature will help warm the baby. I think to myself......how in the world can you not believe in God with the little miracles our bodies perform? Who else could create such a thing in our own bodies to take care of our babies? It's amazing to me. In the classes the teachers would mention "mother nature" as being the one who creates all these things. "Mother nature" is GOD and they aren't mysteries, they are MIRACLES!