15 weeks along and so much to do.

It's been a few weeks since I have posted.

Some days, I wish I didn't spread myself so thin between homelife and volunteering for the March of Dimes.  Other days, like today, I get to talk to Moms and Dads in the NICU and share stories from the "other side"-- life after the NICU/NPCU.  I feel useful, even for a little bit.

I am also trying hard to exceed our fundraising goal from last year for the March of Dimes Walk in April.  I have a few new members this year to our team and am hoping it can boost our total, as I am usually the sole fundraiser.

In other news, I was sick with the strangest symptoms last week.  They included: Headache, body aches, nausea, low-fever, exhaustion, swollen glands and later changed into painful fingertips and feet; strange bruising and blistering on my heels, toes and fingers; rashes that appeared over most of my body, both when hot (from the shower) and at various times during the day.   I still have no idea what it is/was.  It has almost resolved itself now, just over a week after it began.  I hope it isn't something that will flare up occasionally during the rest of the pregnancy.

Yep, Baby is this big.

Current stats:
Weight Gain:  
I had lost about 5 lbs during my "flu/bizarre" sickness episodes" but then we went to "Red Robin" to celebrate out Birthday's and I think I may have gained it all back.  All together, since FET, about 6 lbs.

Cravings:  

Lots of juices and water.  I've found some new fruit juices that contain fresh veggies and fruit juice that I drink in high volume.  For food, I am craving some boxed Annie's creamy deluxe Mac 'N Cheese today, but typically, I'm not very hungry and end up eating a lot of popsicles, fruit cups and veggie wraps.

Nauseous: 

During my strange sickly period last week and I it on and off, but I am hoping it has run its course, especially since I had my last PIO injection Saturday!  Horray!  Now acne, clear up and clear out!

Belly touches: 

DH, the boys, a fellow MoM friend of mine rubbed it (after asking) when we meet up for dinner about two weeks ago.

Feeling:  

In a great mood today!  It's 55 degrees and sunny today! I even cracked the patio door to let some fresh air in :)  That coupled with daylight savings and volunteer stuff today made for a great day so far.  I needed this, desperately.  The boys slept until 8:15am! 

Boy or girl: 

We miiiiight find out this Thursday.  We have another perinatologist appointment with ultrasound.  At 16 weeks, there is a chance, especially if it is a boy, that we may find out.  Or at least gets darn good initial guess. 

Emotional state:  

Today being a "good day" and the weather temporarily being more Spring-like has improved my mood for the time being.  Winter-blues/depression, whatever you want to call it, effects me quite a bit.  In addition, if I can make it to March 28th without losing my mind, I'll have a few days to spend in Arizona visiting my Grandparents without the kiddos.  Giving me a temporary break.  Then, I arrive home in Early April and only have one more week until DH's Spring Break from teaching begins!  Before I know it, it'll be May!

Movement:
Not likely.  But it won't be long from now. 

Maternity clothes: 
Wearing maternity jeans and/or stretchy pants almost full-time now.  Shirts are still non-maternity, but since it's chilly I can wear a lot of sweaters when I go out and tanks at home.  

Baby purchases:  

I haven't bought anything.  I'm trying to wait to hear what the gender is.  That way, if it's a girl, I can buy a few fun "baby girl" items.  If its a boy, I will go through what we already have from the twins and see if there is much I need to purchase.  It is so hard to find 'gender neutral' things.

Nesting: 

Once the warm weather hits, I'm going to have a "Spring cleaning" fiesta!  I own a few obsessive cleaning books for weirdoes like me, that I like to make a checklist out of.   The real nursery work will begin once gender is known and Spring Break arrives in mid-April.

Baseline #1 and Frostie 'relocation' photos.

Today was my first "Baseline" for FET #2.

I've gone back to the first RE I ever had back home in the Milwaukee area.  There were just too many things pissing me off at the clinic in Waukegan.  The billing department is run by a crazy lady that lies to me face. on voicemails and the phone.  I was done.  Too many charges and too many screw-ups.  (Remember them putting in the wrong embryo in 2011???)

I'm back now to the same doctor I saw to have my last two IUI's, the second which led to my first of two ectopic pregnancies.  Now no one is perfect.  While this clinic is hours closer (i.e: 20 minutes from my new house) and more than 1,000 bucks cheaper, it seems to have a couple nurses with heads up their butts.  For the last month or two one nurse has been telling me my FET transfer date would be 3-5 days later then it actually should be.  I may not have a nursing degree but I have done this a few times-- apparently they have not???  I had the dates I assumed confirmed today by the RE.

Anyways, today was my baseline.  The new clinic does things a bit differently then my old clinic.  It makes me nervous because last time worked.

These things include:

• Hardly any meds.  I take BCP, estrogen pills and Progesterone in Oil (PIO).   The last clinic was that with the addition of medrol, tetracycline, progesterone suppository, lupron, low-dose aspirin and probably something else. . . 
• This clinic does not do blood tests during the baseline u/s. 
• There is no hand written specific plan made out for me with individualized dates.  Just a generic form I could have printed off their website.  
• We have yet to have training for the PIO.  Not that we haven't done that shot a billion times, but it was 2 1/2 years ago and we could use a refresher. 
• No OTC Ovulation Predictor kits (OPK).

Between all those things and my RE almost canceling my FET this cycle, I'm a little concerned and stressed. Yep, all because he clearly never even looked at my file to see that I have a HUGE hydrosalphinx in my right fallopian tube.  He thought it was a giant cyst and declared that I'd be going back onto BCP for another month.  I asked him if he was perhaps looking at my hydro.  Yep, the u/s tech was.  DUH!!!!  He then said it could still be a problem with pregnancy.  I asked how that could be so since I had my tubes disconnected back in 2010?  

Yep, didn't see that either.  

How exactly is this supposed to make me feel more comfortable?  

It's not that I'm expecting a lot from any clinic.  I just want to feel as though I am an individual patient.  That you took TWO SECONDS to look at my file and see some SIGNIFICANT areas that should be addressed.  Especially since I just laid down $3,000 upon entering your clinic and hauled both of my embryos over 100 miles from my previous clinic to yours.  (See below). 

The boys wishing the safe journey to their fraternal "twin" embryo siblings.  Well, the container anyways.  I was on the way to pick up the frosties.  Sorry--they never sit still.

The fro sties in their mobile storage device.  Cruising with Mom along I-94N and the scenic side streets to their new home in Milwaukee.  Welcome to WI embies!

One last smooch before they leave me again to go into the deep-freeze in their new (temporary) home.

Back to the baseline Results.

Well the FET is still on for the approx. date of Oct 8th.  I will have another baseline u/s on Oct 2nd to make sure everything is a "go".  My lining looked good--and I had no cysts ;)

Perhaps he will remember me next time--or at least glance at my file before he walks in.  One can only hope. 

TWO MONTHS!

My beautiful boys are TWO MONTHS OLD today! I can't believe it has been so long!

Everyday, DH and I have driven back and forth to the hospital to see them, change their diapers, take their temperatures, hold them, feed them, etc, etc . . .I'm starting to think I should get paid at the hospital! :)

They are truly amazing little babies! Today, Mason weighed 6lbs 7 oz. Christopher weighed 6lbs 1 oz. They have more than doubled their weight since birth!

More on the boys:

Mason-
Weighing 6 lbs 7oz and eating 55cc's at each feeding 8/day. He gets many of his feedings by bottle or breast, however he still needs some support from the gavage tube (feeding tube inserted through his nose). He is also still on the monitor that measures his RR (respiratory rate) and HR (heart rate) via three probes on his chest. Mason is also working on getting his HCT (hematocrit) high enough so that he won't need a blood transfusion. His current level was 24 today! :) That is up from 20 last Monday. This is great news since it should be between 32-42. Basically, the HCT is is the number of red blood cells he has in his blood--without an average amount of the red blood cells he has no energy. That means no energy to eat from the bottle or breast--which then means no going home. . . it's a vicious cycle.

Mason has had good results in most other areas. Yet, I am still concerned about signs of very early ROP in one of his eyes. Unrelated, I am also wondering how long this crazy yellow/green eye drainage he has is going to continue. They ran a culture on it and nothing seems to reveal red flags. Everyone keeps saying it must be a bad case of 'clogged tear ducts'. Well that damn tear duct has been clogged for over a month now and I can only de-crust and wipe out his eyes so many times in a day. I wish there was a better answer.

Anyone have experience with this? Thoughts?

Over all, Mason is a pretty happy little boy! He loves to eat and suck on his pacifier. He is also a big fan of being held after he breast feeds--which he is getting so good at. It is fast becoming our favorite time together :) He has also passed his OT (Occupational therapy) appointments with flying colors! Dr. Sue is so impressed! :)

Mason 1 day old. . .

Mason 2 months old. . .

Christopher-
Weighing 6lbs 1oz today he has finally broken the 6 lb weight barrier! He is currently eating 53cc's at each feeding 8/day. However, he is not as advanced as Mason in his 'nipple feedings'. He takes most of his feedings via gavage, but is working hard with the speech therapist to become better at latching on during bottle feedings, which will then help his breast feedings as well. Christopher has had a few successful breast feedings so far, but they are limited to a maximum of 10-15 minute bursts. His HCT (Hematocrit) is much lower than Mason's which of course means he has even less energy. Monday is was only 19, so the news of 20.7 today, although low is welcome news because that means it is increasing. He has already had two transfusions and I (and the doctors) would like to avoid another one if possible. Transfusing can trick the body into stopping the production of new red blood cells. It causes the body to think, "Hey! We got enough here--hold the production line!" --which in turn only makes things worse later down the road.

Moreover, I think Christopher reflux is what is holding him back most. It really is bad. He is constantly refluxing, coughing and waking up from sleep. No wonder he is tired! If I had that kind of reflux, I wouldn't want to eat either. The only thing that seems to solve the problem is to hold him during and after his feedings-- pretty tricky when you have twins exclusively on your breast milk and need to pump/feed every 2-3 hours!

Christopher is also still on the monitor that measures his RR (respiratory rate) and HR (heart rate) via three probes on his chest. He has had no alarms today; A welcome Birthday gift I am sure! While Mason may have to be watched more closely for ROP, at last check Christopher's seems less likely to cause as much of a problem, although the chance is still there. Christopher also has one more OT appointment on Monday at 11am. Hopefully he will still be right on track and not need anymore appointments with Dr. Sue by the time he goes home.

Christopher is a very sweet little boy! He likes to observe a lot. He can sit wide-eyed in my arms for over an hour just looking around at things in the room. He holds his hands across his chest and seems to know wayyyy more than a little baby his age should. While he has not shown as much interest in nipple feedings as Mason has, he is beginning to come around. Lately, he has begun to develop interest in his pacifier. This is great not only to help train him for nipple feeds but also to perhaps help with the amount that his 'tongue tied' issue effect his feedings. Using the pacifier can help stretch out his tongue, bringing it forward and sometimes correcting the problem on his own without the need for 'surgery'.

Christopher 1 day old. . .

Christopher 2 months old. . .

Happy two month birthday to my adorable little angels!

I love you more than words could ever say. I can't wait to have you home with Daddy and I-- we are hoping you will BOTH be home to stay by Christmas!

Love, Mommy.

xoxo

My boys are breathing on their own!

Chris is off the nasal cannula!

That means both boys are breathing by themselves. :) Chris is still having some dips in his oxygen levels but hopefully over the next few days, he will be able to figure it out on his own. Chris is also has begun breast feeding-- well, kinda. He has had two very short tires at it. He also had a bottle for the first time yesterday. He took 5cc's so that's not bad for his first time.

It's hard for me to make him do the feeding for a long time, because he seems to get so easily tired. He's still very puffy with his edema so I don't want to over stress him at this point--and he has his IV in his head! I'm afraid of bumping it too much. He still needs it for his antibiotics being given for the staph infection that was from his PIC-line.

Mason is still breast feeding one time per day. He is taking quite a bit. Yesterday he went for 25 minutes with just a few burp breaks! Mason's other feedings are a mixture of bottle feeds and gavage feedings.

We are hoping they continue on the good path that they are currently on. But we know it will be at least a few more weeks before Mason could come home-- and even longer for Christopher. It's a mixed blessing: we would love nothing more than to have them home right now-- but on the flip-side, we haven't finished their nursery yet!

Wowza! ONE MONTH!

My little boys are exactly, one-month old today.

I can't believe it! Time has flown by so fast with each day already planned out. . . get up, pump, get house somewhat clean from yesterday's mess, get ready and put some darn clothes on, pump, and then off to see my boys. Then around 5pm DH arrives and we stay for a few more hours with them. Then the long drive home. Rinse and repeat.

But I love nothing more then when I get to see them every day. And when DH come walking through the curtains into our NICU spot, I can relax even more. I cannot wait for him to be on paternity leave when the boys come home!

We are still hoping they will come home sometime in November. Yesterday one of our nurses told us that Mason will most likely come home before his brother-- which I was afraid of. I dreamed of loading them both into the car at the same time and driving off for home all together. *Sigh*

Not to mention how difficult it will be taking care of one baby at home and then still traveling to see the other in the NICU every day. . . How in the Hell is that supposed to work?!??!

Oh well, for now I will concentrate on all the great milestones they have had over the last month. After all one nth ago exactly, I was in labor. . .a few hours away from seeing them for the first time!

Mason: Moved from C-Pap to nasal cannula and this week had the cannula taken out! Breathing all by himself! He has had all of his umbilical and pic-lines removed. He is currently digesting 32 cc's of breast milk (with additional calories) and has not had any billilights in weeks! He also had his first bath on Wednesday! He has moved from 2 lbs 14 oz to 3 pounds 14 oz! One whole pound of weight gain!

Christopher: From ventilator to C-Pap and now on he is using a nasal cannula. His umbilical lines has been removed. Every day, he is receiving lower amounts of IV fluids through his PIC-line because his feedings of "neocate" (a gentle, lactose and soy-free formula) are increasing--now up to 7 cc's! Chris has not needed billilights for weeks and is getting help with too much fluid retention. He peed 81cc's yesterday in one diaper! His weight now has moved from 2 lbs 15 oz to 3 lbs 15 oz! He has gained a whole pound, too!

Wow. They are amazing. Happy one-month birthday little ones! Mommy and Daddy love you a million times!

Week one. . .

Week two. . .

Week three. . .

Week four. . .

Christopher.

Mason.

I LOVE YOU SWEET BOYS!!! - Mommy XOXO

27+ weeks and DH is back in school.

Today DH went back to work, teaching the young minds of Wisconsin.

I miss him already. I mean, I actually have to get up and get my own ice and water now??? I have to remember to eat on my own??? What's up with that?!?! I was so spoiled this Summer.

So now I spend my days continuing the never ending task of unpacking boxes. Moving is a massive headache. Once I think I have unpacked everything we own, I find more boxes of stuff I forgot we had-- many things I can get rid of, but other things I can't get rid of, or am not sure yet if we will need. My theory is to keep most of the 'I think we need that' stuff and if I don't end up using it by next Summer-- it's going into out massive stack of Rummage Sale boxes. Seriously, next Spring-- we are going to have one HELL of a garage sale!

In other news-- I PASSED MY ONE HOUR GESTATIONAL DIABETES TEST!!!!

I can't believe it. I had prepared myself and convinced myself that I would just have to deal with the daily poking and testing. Not to mention my biggest fear-- having to cut down on my fruit consumption! After all, I am carrying multiples, I am not super-slim, and I have been told in the past I am IR and had to go on Metformin for over a year! Go figure!

Both boys are also head down and moving A LOT. I've gotten to see my belly come to life from the outside over the last two weeks. Very 'Aliens'.

Here are some 3-D pictures of the boys at 25 weeks 2 days. (8.16.2011)

Baby A

Baby B

WEEK 27!!! Welcome to the THIRD TRIMESTER, BABIES!!!

Weight Gain: About 25 pounds since the FET in March.

Cravings: I still love fruit-- mainly watermelon :D I also drink a TON of ice water every day. It have to be cold--ice cold. I love it, but I don not love the number of bathroom trips I need to take every hour because of it!

Nauseous: I have found some new chewable vitamins and they make the nauseous side effects disappear. I think they are by the same company that makes the 'belly bars'. Dh says they taste like Flinstones vitamins to him.

Belly touches: DH, my cubette, MIL, Aunt, friend. . . the list continues to grow. AT least people ask :)

Feeling: Sad that DH has gone back to work. It's also strange when the babies move. Sometimes the movement gives me this uncomfortable feeling; almost a sad/depressed feeling. I wish I knew a better way to explain it. Perhaps I am just reminded each time how much I still have to do to get ready for them. I'm afraid it won't all get done in time. What if I have to go on bedrest? I haven't even picked out the paint for the nursery yet and the cribs are coming Saturday!

But other than that-- I feel pretty darn good physically. :)

Emotional state: (See above)

Movement: Like I said above, they move a lot, always in random spurts. DH is so surprised by how strongly they can kick and punch my belly. We still can't believe how lucky we are that they are in there!

Maternity clothes: I've got some nice outfits at this point. I especially love hanging out at home in my new nursing gown/PJ set. So comfy!

Nesting: We are almost decided on the paint color for the nursery. The cribs and dressers are coming Saturday. I ordered the mattresses last night (Naturepedic Organic lightweight). Now we wait for the 'Baby Shower' on the 24th until we buy most other items.

Baby purchases: I've decided to 'wrap-up' buying baby clothes until after the shower. I was too addicted to Zulily :) But I did buy a "Moby Wrap" today in 'forest green' and a fancy hospital gown in blue polka dots!

Baby gifts: .... I think the cupcakes my MIL and FIL are ordering for us for the shower count. We went for a tasting on Tuesday. They will match our Shower invites. (See below).

What are the Flavors, you ask???

Red Velvet cake with Cream Cheese Icing.

Chocolate cake with Mocha Buttercream.

Chocolate cake with Peanut Butter Icing.

Carrot Cake (raisin-free) with Vanilla Buttercream. . . YES.

Today is my V-day! 24 weeks!. . . and I'm fat!

We've made it to 24 weeks! This is known as the good 'ol Viability day, or "V-day"! This means babies born at this stage of the pregnancy have a chance at survival with today's medical technology, etc, etc. However, I have read that a baby was born at 21 weeks and survived as well. That is crazy!

All the same it is a huge milestone for us. It is finally beginning to settle in that these boys are coming home with us at some point. That they must be real--not just part of my imagination!

They are also kicking a moving around a lot. I will be curious to see what position they are in now at the next perinatologist appointment--mid-August.

I am also feeling big as a house. Looking at the drawing above it shows what a woman pregnant with a single, twins, triplets and quads looks like (approx.) at 24 weeks. That I, at 24 weeks, am as big as a singleton Mom at 32 weeks! No wonder I feel like there is nothing I can wear anymore! I pretty much want to live in my stretchy pants, but DH thinks they look bad. So I can't wear them out. I also tried on a dress I bought at the end of June on Zulily hoping to wear it about this point of the pregnancy. I put it on and it felt a little big yet, but more on the side of roomy and comfortable. Problem is, I showed it to DH and he said he didn't like it either. That is didn't "show my shape well."

I tried to tell him, "I have no shape anymore. My shape is 'huge'". I got pretty discouraged. I couldn't find anything that was remotely comfortable for humid Wisconsin in August that showed any kind of 'shape' he might be remembering. I sat there and cried about how much weight I have gained in the last year. I had worked so hard to get in down to a pretty good place. And then--two ectopic pregnancies, IVF, FET, bedrest, medication, stress and 24 weeks of preggo-ness happened. I wouldn't change the way things have gone because my babies are growing at the rate of singletons in there. But it is still very frustrating not being able to wear the things you want without looking ridiculous!

So, the 'girl you remember with that shape'???

That girl has died. That shape--went with her. And you helped me kill her! :)

The woman standing in front of you that is 24 weeks pregnant with twin boys is not (unfortunately) shaped like before. OR shaped like any of the uber-skinny women who got pregnant and even now weigh less that I did before the pregnancy. *Sigh*

So begins the balance between comfort and appearance. Do I wear extremely uncomfortable outfits that make me look slightly better? Or do I say, "Screw what everyone else thinks, I could nap in this damnit!"

Week 23 stats!

While awaiting the big move into our new place (which we hope to have happen next week) I am trying to find some spare time to keep up with my good 'ol blog here. Darn, it has been hard the last few weeks! BUT! We have officially moved out of and SOLD our old house. Now we are staying with my in-laws (yes, my in-laws) for about 11 days until we close on the new place.

Sheesh! I can't wait to start sharing photos of the new nursery!!!

Week 23 stats! The babies are as big as Papayas!!!

Weight Gain: Since the FET, I have gained approx 20 lbs. Good grief. I hope I only gain about another 10 by the end of the pregnancy since it should be slowing down beginning next week!

Cravings: Still love Coke with ice and I also cannot get enough fruit! Pretty much all kinds but I have been devouring peaches in the mornings and love watermelon.

Nauseous: When I need to eat or when I need to roll over at night and find myself in a strange position.

Belly touches: DH, and now I've told my MIL she can one a day at night while we are staying with her. I know she'll like that, even though I feel strange as Hell. :)

Feeling: Pretty good but still dragging by the end of the day. I decided to have a "Spa Day" today to help me relax. Things are so much cheaper near my in-laws, away from the big city. I had a massage, facial, manicure and pedicure. The woman who did my massage and nail appointments was also pregnant, although about two months behind me with a singleton. It was nice to talk with her about a few pregnancy topics and get pampered at the same time. I feel much better now. :D

Emotional state: We are awaiting completion of each of the items from our home inspection. As you might imagine, things will be up in the air and tinged with the stench of stress until we have signed the papers and moved in. I also feel less able to accept things and be tolerant.

Movement: Moving throughout the day quite a bit. But there is no consistent schedule I've noticed, but they seem to move most at the beginning and end of the day.

Maternity clothes: I can't wear much of anything outside of maternity clothes these days. There are some stretchy T-shirts and tanks I can still wear, but I only like to wear them if they are long. I have also recently purchased a few Fall sweaters for when the weather turns and some organic/bamboo pads "Bamboobies" for any "nip-leakage". I can't wait for that day. . . .

Nesting: As soon as we move in to the new place (fingers crossed) next week the massive nesting begins!

Baby purchases: Tons of clothes, shoes, a few books and soon we will purchase the bedroom set(s).

Baby gifts: None this week, but we are anxiously awaiting the shower in September/ October.

Half baked for a twin Momma!

Week 19 stats! My mango babies!!!

Weight Gain: About 10 pounds now since FET. (Lost about 8 during the first few and have since gained it back and then 10 more!) I've been gaining about 1-3 pound per week.

Cravings: Decaf Iced tea, Colas, Cheeto puffs (still haven't eaten any!), any melon.

Nauseous: Pretty darn rare.

Belly touches: No one new recently. I enjoy DH's tummy touches the most anyways. :)

Feeling: Worn out easily. I hate stairs. These extra pounds and belly pulling forward are hard on my body.

Boy or girl: We know they are boys! Two little boys. It's been way too tempting to shop!

Emotional state: Excited put a bit stressed. We have accepted an offer (A low-ass, cheap offer) on our house. Can't believe it actually. But we are still waiting for the inspector to come next week Tuesday to be able to finalize everything. So in the meantime we have been frantically looking for homes we like since we have a "move-out" date of August 1st!

We also have the four most adorable 4-5 week old kittens in our house right now. I know some people may think I am crazy, but I can never turn any animal away. Just can't. So we have been taking care of four feral and VERY well behaved kittens for almost a week now. Problem is DH and I see this differently. He is VERY worried/upset that I will end up with toxoplasmosis. I am not as worried based on the fact that we have fostered feral and domestic cats since 2006. So I figure, if I hadn't gotten it by then, what are the odds of getting it for the first time now??? Either way, I understand his concerns to be on the safe side. So for the last couple days DH has been in with them exclusively and I still make the food, etc. before we tale them to the Humane Society tomorrow to go out for fostering. But I tell you, it's very hard. They are so dang precious! See photo of 'Moostache' below :D

"Who's a big mess after they eat?!?!?!"(By the way, that is DH's hairy arm, not mine).

Movement: I'm pretty sure I can feel them moving around a bit and doing some light punching exercises. But nothing DH has been able to feel yet. I can't wait for him to feel them!

Maternity clothes: Haven't bought any this week-- but I will need some bigger underwear and bras very soon!

Nesting: We are looking for the new house-- pretty much buying it for the kids. I'd say that one Hell of a nesting project :)

Baby purchases: I swear I am tempted to buy things every day. I just bought more cute boy things today on Zulily. I LOVE that place! I believe I bought several onesies, two pairs of shoes, a few cute little boy hats (fedora style :) and a maternity shirt for my ever-expanding belly.

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th, everyone!

Today brings happy thoughts and a bit of sadness to DH and I. Today we are pregnant with two boys who are coming this Fall! But today is also the due date for the baby (babies) we lost due to my second ectopic pregnancy back in November 2010. They were cute little buddies, weren't they? :)

It's a comforting thought to know that now we are pregnant. It makes me think back on the very emotional and dark days we had last year and how wonderful it is that we are successfully pregnant now. I can't wait to meet our baby boys this November!!! Mommy and Daddy have waited for SO long! :)

In other, lighter news, my mind has been racing lately with the thought of actually DELIVERING these Boys!

So of course the fireworks in my head have collected themselves into bursts of energy when looking into nursery inspirations. Here are a few of my faves. (Keep in mind, DH wants the furniture to be expresso brown and NOT white). Thoughts???

This one from last time. . . .

Currently, DH and I have started the search for items that match each of our favorite colors: Green and Orange. I found a jumping off point from this poster on the "Land of Nod" site.

Although I love the colors on their own, with the expresso brown furniture I feel it needs some brightening up. Perhaps using white and silver/metal accents in the room?

I also love a grey wall color, one with a hint of brown/taupe.

Do I need something else to lighten it up? Like a splash of blue or yellow? Or is that too much?

I want the room to look fresh, bright and tasteful without overstimulating babies that should be sleeping! :)

Hmmm. . . Good thing I've got a few more weeks ahead of me.

Suggestions greatly appreciated! :)

Again, Happy fourth!

18 weeks preggo with TWO BOYS!

My bad, everyone.

I had intended to post on Sunday after we had told everyone and I could make a weekly update. But with the Open House, every day showings and constant cleaning before and after--not to mention hunting down the cats to take in the car for our hour+ wait-- I have not had the time. I can only imagine what this will be like hen we have the dang kids-- Oh did I mention-- they're both BOYS.

Holy cow, eh?

DH and I were convinced we had one of each in there. No idea why we thought that, but we did. Perhaps it was because our perinatologist was so sure one of them was a boy back at 12 weeks and didn't know on the other one yet. Clearly, Baby A was not cooperating then--and still wasn't at the last check-up.

We had a LONG ultrasound with not the nicest tech doing it. At one point she actually said, "This baby is not nice at all." Umm. Excuse me. Perhaps you're the one who can't do their job-- babies are babies--they do whatever the Hell they want.

Anyways, We got to see the two again and despite Baby A's awkward position (they were right on top of one another-- each head next to the other's feet) we got some pretty good 3-D photos of them. (Soon to come when DH scans them for me).

What was a little concerning is that Baby A's placenta is on my cervix. Not completely covering the whole thing, but enough that the Doctor put me on "pelvic rest" until we see some change. Her hope is that as the uterus expands it will continue to move away from the cervix and not more onto it. Yeah, lets hope. A placenta previa will put me on bedrest for sure!

In other news-- I hate going to OB appointments. They are completely pointless when you have a perinatologist. I go in and pay to have her find the heart beats for two seconds and then leave. Why do I waste my time and money for that? Within a few days I see the specialist and get the king of all thorough ultrasounds. So someone please explain to me what the point is. I am a lost and confused preggo lady.

The babies look pretty good from what I can tell. Baby A had a heartbeat of 153 b/m and weighed about 8 ounces. Baby B's heart rate was 142 b/m and weighed about 7 ounces.

Now for my weekly stats.

Weight Gain: About 8 pounds now. I seem to be gaining 2-3 pounds per week. I feel like that is a lot. My books say at my weight I only need to gain 1-1.5 pounds per week. So I am going to try and be even more careful about what I'm putting in.

Here's my belly at 18 weeks. . .

Cravings: Teas, Cheetos puffs (although I haven't had any), gazpacho.

Nauseous: Just the occasional one when I begin to eat in the AM.

Belly touches: DH, friend, fellow art teacher and my Uncle Joe talked right to them on Friday when we told him and my Dad they are two boys. (My Dad is an identical twin). His twin Brother, My Uncle, is crazy mind you-- doesn't everyone have at least one crazy Uncle? He pretty much grabbed my belly and yells something like, "Hey babies! We are gonna part-aayy!"

Feeling: Good Lord. The right side is still driving me nuts. I also don't feel that "Second trimester burst of energy" that people talk about. Yes, I am less nauseous, but I certainly don;t feel like my old self. Maybe it's a multiples thing.

Boy or girl: Sorry, no blue cake to reveal. We decided against it since my parents couldn't come on the same day as DH's parents. We ended up telling them both separately, which was totally fine. I am pretty sure DH's Mom wanted at least one girl, but I'm sure she'll get over it.

Emotional state: Up and down. I feel kinda bummed sometimes--but I think it's mostly because I am bored. I'd love to clean this house from top to bottom and decorate the nursery--but I can't. Not on;y do I not have the energy, but our hope is that we will sell this place and find a new home with a much better room and layout. So there isn't much point in becoming too invested or involved in designing one here until we know for sure that we have to stay put.

Movement: I feel sudden pains and jolts but nothing I can say is for sure a baby movement.

Maternity clothes: My new maternity swim suits are pretty sweet! I got both of these from 'A Pea in the Pod' on sale.

Nesting: Again. Awaiting our house sale for most of it. However, I did organize the downstairs closet on what used to be my office. It now holds all of our baby things. I could stand in there at stare at it all damn day.

Baby purchases: Oh geeze. DH and I had a Kohls shopping marathon last Friday after we knew they were two Boys. We pretty much bought everything in the store that we wanted--getting quite a few things on clearance. In addition, we went rummaging that same day and found a lot of new things for super cheap. Since then I have looked in the clearance of every baby store buying the good deals. I have also washed each item, bought blue velvet hangers and size separator tags to use in the closet.

My problem now is trying not to boy every cute piece of clothing I see that is on sale or clearance. But MAN! It's so hard not to now that we now there are two little Boys coming this Fall!