Seven Weeks Old

As of Wednesday, the twins are 7 weeks old! We're almost out of the newborn stage and we're starting to try and get into a routine. Let me tell ya, twins are hard. The first 4 or 5 weeks were kind of a nightmare, to put it lightly. I don't want to speak too soon, but I think we're headed out of the woods. From what I hear from other twin moms, we won't be out of the woods completely until they turn one, but I'm headed down the path out anyway. If I had just one more hand, I'd be golden. I can hold a baby in each arm and rock or bounce them, but an extra hand would be helpful when the binky falls out or when Easton needs something that just can't wait. I'm getting creative, though.

The boys are growing well and nursing is going great. I think once they hit a month old, it became much easier. They latched well, I learned to nurse more discreetly, and we figured out some different holds for nursing.  Despite some serious weight loss the first week, we never had to supplement which I'm really proud of! No, I'm not judging anyone who has to use formula, but I was aiming to exclusively breast feed and we're being successful! Next week is their 2 month physical already, I'm anxious to see how much they've grown! At their lowest weights, Maverick was just under 5 pounds and Tucker barely over 6. I am thrilled to now be seeing thighs and cheeks getting chubbier!

My help is all back to work so most days it's just me and the three boys. I've managed to figure out how to time things well in order to be able to get a shower in, or throw a load of laundry in. I've heard that twin moms learn how to be really efficient with their time and I'm starting to see why! The amount of cleaning I can get done in 10 minutes is growing every day. It helps that the boys are becoming more aware of their surroundings and more content to just look around. Big Brother Easton is great at entertaining them and giving them lots of almost-gentle kisses. 

I still cannot believe that I had twins! It's such a challenge but such a blessing. The boys are quickly stealing my heart! It takes time to bond with your newborn, and I think even more when there are two of them, but we're there! Maverick's little lips are the sweetest things and his grins make me melt. I could kiss Tucker's cheeks all day and I love how he relaxes and closes his eyes when I rub his forehead. Tucker just finally started smiling this past week and it is the most incredible smile! Ok, besides his two brothers' smiles...

Sleeping is getting better. Maverick is starting to sleep 5-6 hours at a time at night. Tuck, who I affectionately call Fat Boy, can't go much longer than 3-4 hours. I'm still getting some sleep though. They are good about going right back to sleep after their midnight snacks.

I intended to update this blog much more often, and hopefully that will happen the more I learn to juggle three boys. They grow so much, whether or not anyone reads these, I want to be able to look back and remember the little things! It's definitely already going so quickly.

Better get back to my boys! Enjoy the pics:

Tuck on left, Maverick on right

Mr. Maverick

Baby butts!

Twenty week Twins!

Do you ever get ready in the morning, head out the door, and just feel like it's going to be a great day? Today was one of those days. Coffee in hand, birds chirping, it's already over 30 degrees at 9am, and today I'm 20 WEEKS!

I am officially halfway!! Hopefully, I'm over halfway. I for sure don't want those twinsies coming too early but I think if I was still pregnant at 40 weeks I might just die. The babies are the size of bananas! They are 6.5 inches crown-to-rump, or 10 inches total, and about 10 ounces! My sister pointed out to me that if they were laying feet to feet they would be the length of a full term baby already! That's a lot of baby.

We had our mid-pregnancy ultrasound last week and it looks like the babies are doing wonderfully. Their heartbeats are strong and they are measuring right on time. We couldn't get all the measurements because they were moving so much so I have to go back next week for another ultrasound (oh, darn!). Here's some shots of the babes!

I am in love already! And beyond excited. I found a forum yesterday for twin moms and a bunch of the ladies would post their pictures of their newborns and excitedly post, "they're here!" (ok, some of them would say "their here!" but I'm sure in their after birth haze they weren't thinking about grammar). Anyway, to see those precious little miracles made me tear up. I still sometimes can't get over the fact that I'm going to have two babies at once. Is it too soon to pack my hospital bag???

As far as pregnancy goes, I'm doing great. The babies are getting much stronger and I'm starting to feel them way more often.  I don't really have any annoying pregnancy symptoms right now other than low energy. I am starting to notice my limits though. Monday night I came home from work and cleaned/cooked for hours... Tuesday I woke up with back pain and was exhausted all day. Oh well. I am so grateful for a smooth first half of this pregnancy. I assume the second half won't be a breeze, but I'm ready for it! 

The picture on the right is from over the weekend, a few days before 20 weeks. I had to compare it to a picture from my pregnancy with Easton, so that's the pic on the left. How far along was I there, you ask? Ummmm.... well.... 30 weeks. Yikes, I know. In my defense, I had just eaten a huge lunch in the pic on the right! I know I will have a much bigger belly than before, but if I'm showing about 10 weeks ahead, what am I going to do at week 35? 38? I will be looking full term so soon! Oh, how uncomfortable. 

I don't mean to whine, I wouldn't trade this for the world. How many people can say they are growing two little lives inside of them? It's amazing. I am so blessed that God gave me the chance to do this. So I'm going to suck it up, and be grateful! I do appreciate your prayers as I start off on the second half of pregnancy.  There are a lot of risks that show up in the second half, but I'm going to take it one day at a time. 

As always, thanks for reading! 

10 Things I Learned at Childbirth Class

Saturday I went to my first birthing class. My doula had some friends that were having their first childbirth education class and I offered to go be a guinea pig and give feedback. Honestly, I did not think I would learn that much. After all, I have 3 whole pregnancy apps and I've already had a child. But I have never been through labor, so I thought I could at least get a few tidbits of helpful info. I got much more than I expected. Here are some of the things I left with:

1. Childbirth classes are important. If you are pregnant with your first, find one and take one. You learn a lot of terms from your doctor but a lot of doctors don't really thoroughly explain them. Also, during labor, nurses and doctors ask you a lot of questions and expect you to weigh the pros and cons quickly while you are in pain. Having a plan in place and knowing what will be thrown at you is very helpful. 

2. Bringing your husband can make it awkward.  Most of the guys in the class seemed a little squeamish at some of the terms. They can get on board with uterus, vagina, cervix, etc. but when you break out perineum, mucous plug, and episiotomy they start squirming.  Then show them a video of a baby's head popping out followed by the delivery of the placenta, and their faces start getting pretty white.  I know its different with your own kid. My husband will hopefully be able to look past the gross parts and melt at the sight of his boys being born. But in a classroom setting and some random woman's lady parts on a big screen, different story. Luckily, my hubby was working.

3. Not bringing your husband and instead bringing your friend/doula is even more awkward.  I knew we only had to make it through introductions before we could explain that she was my doula and not my significant other. I'm kicking myself in the pants for not introducing us as Susan and Carol (Friends fans will get it). After explaining to the class that she was filling in for my husband who had to work, I though the awkward part was over. Silly me. Of course we're going to try out some of the labor positions and then get massages from our partners. I couldn't help but laugh the whole time. I guess if my doula will be there during labor/birth, I might as well get used to it getting awkward! She's great though, we had a lot of fun. Any day spent talking about babies is a good day for me!

4. By the end of your pregnancy, your bladder looks like a pancake. I knew that it gets squished, but actually seeing a diagram of your bladder at week 4 and again at week 40 makes you wonder how it fits any liquid in there (think grapefruit size before, chocolate chip cookie after). And I will have 2 babies laying on it. The last few weeks of my pregnancy will probably be the only time in my life I will be asking for a catheter.  Side note: The lady said I should be drinking 3-4 liters of water a day. Liters? Lady, this is 'merica. I don't know what the heck you're talking about.

5. One day of growing a baby expends as much energy as walking uphill 5 miles. I have two babies I'm cooking, so I'm going to take the liberty of saying its 10 miles for me. I walked 10 miles uphill today in addition to working my job, cooking, cleaning, and taking care of my 1 year old, what have you done? 

6. There are 4 stages in labor. Here's my version: 

• Early labor, Phase 1: "Ouch, this really hurts, but sure, the families can come visit for a little while."
• Active labor, Phase 2: "I'm only how many centimeters? Why again do I want to avoid an epidural? Also, get the family out of here before I punch one of them!"
• Transition, Phase 3: "I'm NEVER doing this again! OOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW. I swear to sweet baby Jesus, if you touch my head one more time I'm going to throw you out the 3rd floor window."
• Birth, Phase 4: (ahhhh push it, P-P-Push it real good!) "He's here! Baby A is here! *cue the tears* Holy crap that hurt, what a big head. Wait, you mean to tell me I have to do that again?! The second one is breech? Excuse me, you're going to stick your hand where?!?!?!"

7. Yoga Balls help during labor. This one is self explanatory. I want a pink one.

8. It's helpful to bring a pair of shorts for laboring.  This one wasn't really part of the class, it was a conclusion I came to after watching/trying out some of the laboring positions. I think squatting in a bottomless and backless gown is probably not so comfortable. Or attractive.

9. The "he-he-who-who" breathing is not going to help, unless your goal is to hyperventilate. Breathing through a contraction is important, but the quick short breaths in all the movies isn't going to help any. Controlled deep breaths are more helpful. Apparently, grunting through pushes is also helpful. We practiced. I'm a grunting pro now. 

10. Husbands should be preparing for labor. 15-20 pushups a day and nightly massages will help him be ready to support his laboring wife. I told my husband this. He laughed. Thanks a lot, babe.

There you have it. Ten random things I learned from childbirth class. There was much more, but I won't bore you with it all. I strongly encourage all you preggo ladies to attend one. Just don't wait until right before you give birth. Watching some random lady push a baby out takes at least a month or two to recover from. 

Two of a Kind

As I'm sitting here on Monday morning, reflecting on the past weekend, I can't help but be overwhelmed with gratefulness. I'm no fool in thinking that I made this life for myself. I did nothing, except to try and listen for God's direction, and I know I fell short in that too. He has blessed me with so much, and I do not deserve it. But that's my God. I'm reminded of this verse: "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" (Matthew 7:11) I know that I LOVE giving my son good gifts. It makes sense that God would want to do the same for us. The gifts He gives are not the materialistic things. They are the things that make your life rich. Not money rich, it's like chocolate rich. Think dove chocolate versus dollar store crap. (my metaphors make sense in my head)

So anyway, on to my weekend. Saturday morning my parents and two sisters, and Jeremy's parents and two sisters went with us to breakfast. We ate, we laughed, I chugged water so my bladder would be full for the ultrasound. Then we headed to Baby's Bungalow. Their set-up is great: a dim-lit room, comfy couches, a huge tv for everyone to watch the ultrasound on. We had 10 people shoved in that room, all eager to see my two little babies. Once they popped up on the screen, there were "awwwww's" around the room. Then it turned to sniffles. It's safe to say there are a lot of people who will love these twins.

If you've had ultrasounds, you know the emotions that come with it. Watching your little miracle in there moving around, heart beating, is just indescribable. The ultrasound tech told us that she could easily tell the gender of both twins! What a relief. I kept thinking how lame it would be to throw a gender reveal party with no genders to reveal....

Alright, fast forward 5 LONG hours later. We're at my parent's house, both sides of the family are there. We said the party would start at 5 and we'd do the reveal after everyone got some snacks, maybe around 5:30. It was 4:59, everyone was there, some people had snacks, close enough! Jeremy was ready to go. So here's the video:

Two boys! Two more boys! We are so excited! We always said that we wanted lots of boys, and we're off to a great start. More trucks, more camo, more legos, more tools! Easton will be so excited to have brothers. They will be best buds. We are truly blessed to be having what we were really hoping for! (I'm sure I will change my mind about that once the first elbow goes through my wall, or the first baseball goes through my window, or during the first trip to the ER cause someone fell out of a tree).

I've seen my twins on an ultrasound 4 times now, and yet sometimes it doesn't seem real. But last night, it hit me. I know I have a growing belly, I know I have pictures of them, but when I felt movement for the first time last night, it all connected. These two precious babies are growing inside of me right now. And before 14 weeks, I could feel them. Not the "oh, maybe that was the babies." It was the "oh my gosh, that was them!". Cue the tears. What a miracle.

I will end this with saying thank you to all who are reading this. To you who care enough to listen to my thoughts about my pregnancy. Thank you to the countless people who have said congratulations. To the people who have hugged me. To the people who have rejoiced with me. Thank you to the hundreds of people who have liked my posts on facebook. It seems silly, but that's hundreds of people who are excited for me and my beautiful family. We appreciate your kind words, and we covet your prayers.

The Waiting Game

2 Days. 2 DAYS! I can hardly contain myself. I have a stupid grin on my face at work this morning, behind all the snot from this lovely cold I caught. In two days, we are heading to Baby's Bungalow to find out my twin's gender. Baby's Bungalow is this cute little place that does elective ultrasounds, and boasts gender determination at 13 weeks gestation. By Saturday, I will be 13 weeks, 3 days and we are hoping to find out both genders. We have both families coming with us to watch the ultrasound, followed by a big party in the evening with the whole family from both sides. There we will all find out together and eat and party the night away (or until about 8pm... my new bedtime). I cannot wait!!

I had my second prenatal appointment last week and my mom got to go with me. She was thrilled that they did an ultrasound to look at the heartbeats. I'm pretty sure these two babies have her wrapped around their fingers already! Other than the normal pap smear/physical (with Mom in the room... AWKWARD!), we just chatted about the babies. My doctor is surprisingly supportive of my desire to have a VBAC which is wonderful! The only stipulation: one or both have to be head down. I also have to deliver at a bigger hospital that is more accustomed to doing these types of deliveries. The doc said that she used to do breech deliveries during her residency, but isn't comfortable with them anymore. I love my doctor. She is so blunt, like me.  She said when a lady comes in "with legs hanging out of her vagina" then she will have to do a breech delivery. Such a wonderful image. Just think about it.

In other news, I have a doula! I'm very excited to have her help me through this. I'm not going to lie, the delivery scares me just a little bit, so it will be great to have a positive, encouraging lady by my side.  Her business is called Baby's Breath and she is a friend of mine. She is just starting out and will get to throw a VBAC with twins on her resume if all works out. I'm so glad her and I can help each other out. It's safe to say our friendship will be different after she sees me in labor and delivering babies. It like being drunk, some people are happy drunks and some are absolutely miserable drunks. I'm sure there are people out there that go through labor with a smile on their face, but the majority probably does some yelling/punching/fit-throwing. If anything, I probably won't take out my pain on my doula, it will be my poor husband. I remember my sister in labor and her husband turned the TV to Braveheart... maybe not the movie you want to make your wife watch during labor. I can just picture Jer doing the same thing. But I guess we will see! Should be interesting.

Last update: yes, I'm showing! The bump is not entirely made up of the chicken fingers and honey mustard I've been eating. Doc says I should be feeling movement in two or three weeks! So exciting. Babies are the size of peaches this week. Precious! Makes me thing of Psalm 139:

"For you created my inmost being;

    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

14 

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

    your works are wonderful,

    I know that full well.

15 

My frame was not hidden from you

    when I was made in the secret place,

    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

16 

Your eyes saw my unformed body;

    all the days ordained for me were written in your book

    before one of them came to be."

It is crazy to think that every day of my twin's lives are already known by God. He knows what they will look like, what their personalities will be like, what hobbies they will have, what friends they will make, when they will get married. What an awesome God we serve! And to think that he is carefully knitting them together in my womb right now! What a miracle.

Well, thanks for reading all my rambling, so much is going through my head right now! It's nice to write it all out. I will be sure to update on Saturday with genders!

10 Week Update

Yesterday, Jeremy and I went to the first "official" ultrasound for the twins. I can't put into words how I feel watching an ultrasound. It is so amazing how little, black and white blobs on a screen can make you feel! Both babies were squirming around, and both had perfect heartbeats. We are in love already.

As far as the technical side goes, there are two amniotic sacs, two chorionic sacs, and two placentas. This is the safest way to have twins, we were told.  It also means that they most likely are fraternal. There is a small chance they could be identical, but it makes more sense to assume they are fraternal. They both are the exact same size, measuring right on time (10 weeks as of today).  The hope is that they continue to be the same size.  The ultrasound tech also told us that I ovulated from my left ovary... I don't know why you need to know that, but I found it interesting anyway.

The doctor we spoke to went through pretty much all the information we needed to know about twin pregnancy. I'm considered high risk because of the twins, but the doctor assured us that all of the risks are small and manageable. I have a higher chance of developing gestational diabetes, and a higher chance of preterm labor.  Apparently, around 50% of twins are born between 32-36 weeks. I am praying to make it to 38-39 weeks. If family history is any indication, I believe I can make it that long (my mother was 5 days LATE with her twins!). Even if they are born in that 32-36 week range, there would be no long term complications.

Quite a bit of the time we had with the doctor was spent talking about delivery. With Easton, I had to have a C-Section because he was breech. I remember crying after scheduling my C-Section. If you don't go through labor, you can't be a real mom, I thought. I came to terms with it and did fine with the surgery, but recovery was no piece of cake.  Before knowing it was twins, I was determined to do a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean). After much talk with the doctor, it looks like that still may be an option! I was so glad to hear that. I can't imagine trying to recover from major surgery with two newborns and a 2 year old! I would be so hard to breast feed, too. And yes, I'm going to do that... My mom did it, so I can do it!  But anyway, my delivery will have to be a last minute decision. There are just too many variables that will have to be taken into consideration.

We made the announcement on Facebook yesterday after we got done with our appointment. It was killing me! I was ready to tell the world. Easton was NOT thrilled about me making him pose with a frame, but somehow I got some cute pics!

We are just so excited about this! And by "we," I mean me. Jeremy is excited, too, but he's not at the talk-about-it-every-second-of-every-day point that I am. Men have a different way of showing their excitement, I guess.

Alright, I'm done rambling.  Next thing I'll be posting about should be our gender reveal! We are going to try Baby Bungalow in Buffalo to see if they can tell the gender at 13 weeks.

I'll leave you with another cute picture. The "Hill Twins" just sounds so great, doesn't it?