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!

Week 17 (and 2 days...)

The babies are as big as Onions. They weigh about 5 1/2 ounces and are over 5 inches in length!

DH and I are starting to come to terms with the fact that these babies are for real. Now that I am on Summer break (and a 4-5 year Mommy break) I find myself thinking about babies all damn day long. And it's GREAT! I can't wait to decorate the nursery-- choosing each item, making sure I got the best thing possible for them. But there is SO much to choose from! Depending upon if we have boys or girls or a boy and a girl, will determine what color the cribs and furniture is-- therefore dictating the entire color scheme of the room! So for now, at least until Thursday, I will have to hold off on all of my decorating plans. Oh yes, and we need to sell this house first!

This one's pretty cute though!

Current Stats:

Weight Gain: About 5 pounds since FET. But of course it went down when I was sick in first tri.

Cravings: Popsicles, ICE cold water, and organic applesauce.

Nauseous: Kind of gone for the most part. Just a few occasional bouts.

Belly touches: DH, as always. But my BFF from childhood also gave it rub when she saw me on Saturday. Funny story: As I was choosing my 'slo fe' at Walgreen's today, a man that looked like Charlie Daniels (cowboy hat and all) told me I had a "beautiful bulge". I assumed he was referring to my bump.

Feeling: Still having morning and evening pain on each side--especially the right side. I hope it isn't kidney stone related. I have two stones in my right kidney after all.

Boy or girl: If babies cooperate, we should know by Thursday evening! BUT we may keep it a secret until the weekend. We are hoping to have a 'cake' reveal party for our parents this weekend. Photos will follow if we do! :)

Emotional state: Now that I am on Summer vacation--and frankly a 5 year or so break from teaching-- I feel great! If Wisconsin's weather would improve, I could enjoy more relaxing times at the pool.

Movement: They could be making some movements that I detect--but so far I have pushed them all into the 'gas' and 'bloating' category-- 'cause of course I have that too!

Maternity clothes: Other than my pre-pregnancy stretchy pants and a few tops that are loose, I pretty much exclusively live in maternity wear. I actually have to go purchase a new swim suit for the Summer. My bump is getting BIG! I should post some photos. . .

Nesting: Had a bunch of people come to look at our house already. Two showings seem like there still may be some life to them, but we still have another 3 this week and an open house on Sunday. Pretty much everyday of the week (sometimes several times during the day) we are taking the cats out of the house and trying to figure out what to do with ourselves. Someone PLEASE buy this place!

Baby purchases: Ordered a bunch of cute onesies and baby T's form "Threadless". DH and I love their shirts. The outfits are pretty gender neutral and 'hip' either way.

Here's one of our faves:

My favorite Summer dress.

As today is the first day of my Summer Vacation-- and long time 'step away' from teaching, I thought I'd post my favorite Summer dress that I am wearing today!

I love it! It has pockets, adjustable straps and plenty of baby belly room. I feel like the skinny chick in the photo is pushing OUT her belly even more, making the dress look kinda weird on her-- but I swear, it is extremely comfy and cute. :)

Bought at 'A Pea in the Pod'.

16 weeks . . .and counting!

Yep! These puppies are as big as good 'ol avocados!

My (updated) current stats:

Weight Gain: 1-2 pounds total.

Cravings: Popsicles and tacos :)

Nauseous: Only when I first drink OJ in the morning.

Belly touches: DH is the most regular user other than myself.

Feeling: A few pains on my right side that are not RLP related. Not sure what they are. When I saw the OB today she didn't seem concerned. But man, when they hit--they are painful!

Boy or girl: We will know next Thursday as long as the babies are in a good position! :)

Emotional state: Can be kinda cranky, but I have a feeling Summer break (which begins Friday evening) will bring me much happiness and days of relaxing by the pool :)

Movement: Apparently, I have both anterior and posterior placentas. This means the placenta underneath my bellybutton is blocking the subtle movements I could be feeling now. Poo!

Maternity clothes: I love my maternity jeans! Have I mentioned that?!?! Click here to see DH's visual journal entry about my "pant love". He also does a lot of entries about the pregnancy if you are interested.

Baby purchases: Got a free baby monitor--not sure if we'll use it though.

Nesting: The house is up on the market as of Monday night. We've had someone come to look already and will have another on Friday.

LAST PIO SHOT!!!! 15 weeks!

Our babies are as big as oranges this week-- big 'ol oranges. But I have even more currently exciting and long awaited news-- I TOOK MY LAST PIO SHOT LAST NIGHT!!!! O.M.G. I am so damn happy!

I have been taking shots daily since February!!! That is insane. 15 weeks of PIO shots is insane. I can't believe my lower back made it! It was looking and feeling pretty rough.

My (updated) current stats:

Weight Gain: Gained maybe 1 pound?

Cravings: Still in love with a Coke but I also am digging Popice Popsicles.

Nauseous: Same random bouts of nausea.

Belly touches: DH is the most regular user other than myself.

Feeling: Much better that the end of the school year is coming--hard to believe I will be on a "break" from that job for a while.

Boy or girl: Still thinking one of each. I think we should know for sure by the 15th or 23rd appointments.

Emotional state: Still a bit moody and emotional.

Movement: Nothing easily identifiable yet.

Maternity clothes: I am almost exclusively in my maternity wear. Thing I had before that were stretchy or loose still work too.

Baby purchases: Nothing this last week. But I did take the kids for a sun tan and a swim in the pool Saturday! :)

Nesting: The 'roofers' are putting the roof on (and tearing it off) as I type this. My home is a noisy mix of banging and pounding. I am pissed that they are crushing my plants. I had to call the guy AGAIN about that. (I took a few photos for insurance purposes too :)

Well how about that.

I've resigned from my high school teaching job this week.

It was a long, hard decision. But it had to happen. DH and I realized soon after we knew twins were coming that I would not make enough money to cover childcare for two infants. This next year, my numbers have dropped and I would actually end up PAYING to go to work while my children are in childcare. Yeah. . . that is not going to happen.

Our original hope was that I could take "the year off" and then decide later if I was able to convince family or find a cheap childcare whether I was coming back or not. But our current contracts say that I would have to come back to work for September and October before my "due date" in November. The problem is I will most likely deliver before my "normal singleton due date" and may even end up on bed-rest before. I don't need the added stress of worrying about all of that. It's just not for me anymore.

All my work this year (and the years leading up to it) to get this job and make it the best program and facility possible. . . and now I just give it to someone else. This is simply another example of how little money teachers actually make. *Sigh*

Oh well. Life will go on. I have always talked about how much I'd love to stay home with my children for a few years. Now it's here and I am having trouble making the adjustment. I'm sure when September rolls around and I have no meetings to attend or lesson plans to finalize or papers to copy in massive quantities-- I will be just fine with my decision.

I was at a party for retiring teachers last night. One of whom was my mentor and 'teaching idol'. Those that knew about my choice to resign were very excited for me and told me I'd never regret my choice. Many of them had made the same choice themselves-- even a few with twins. I really do feel I have made the right choice. I just need some time to understand that I have now given up all control of my life to two people that are not even born yet.

Now if we could just sell this house so we can buy one for the babies and start nesting!!!

14 weeks 1 day.

Babies are as big as lemons. My belly is getting obvious. I am getting heavier. . . eek! I saw the scale this morning and hoped I wouldn't gain that weight until the end of this week or mid-way through next week! Hopefully it'll even out tomorrow morning :)

Current stats:

Weight Gain: As of this morning, I am back to the weight I was at when I had the FET. Ugh. . . it's a lot.

Cravings: LOVE cola soda. Regular coke is my favorite in a glass of ice. :) YUM!

Nauseous: I seem to get it the most when I begin eating or drinking my OJ on the way to work. I also have it at work during the middle of the day every once in a while.

Belly touches: Of course DH and now I think my MIL has made a few attempts. I'm not so into people being inside my bubble. . .so I am trying to get used to it.

Feeling: Very sleepy. I could nap anytime during the day. You could literately point at me and say, "SLEEP!". . . and I could.

Boy or girl: After our perinatologist appointment, I am convinced there is at least one boy in there. I'm getting ready to bet on one girl and one boy :)

Emotional state: I cry at Billy Joel's, "Lullaby" song every time.

OBGYN: Eh, she's okay. I've only had one appointment with her so far, so the next time on June 15th will be a better test.

Movement: Pretty sure it's just gas :)

Told anyone yet?: Just about everyone possible! Parents, family, friends, co-workers, etc. . .

Maternity clothes: Major purchases at Destination maternity and Kohls. I love my new preggo jeans with the fabric flap on top. I also need shirts with more space in the belly area!

Baby purchases: Bought a few boppy covers for our pillows while they were on sale at Target.

Nesting: We are having a new roof put on our house this week so that this next weekend-- it'll be on the market! If we sell this sucker before September we will be in our new place before the babies come. If we don't sell by the end of August, we will have to stay here for a while and then I will prepare the nursery here. So. . . until we sell or the end of Summer. . . I won't now what is going to happen. Grr. Someone buy this place!