The Great Snow Storm of 2011

Earlier this week, our local weather folk were predicting THE STORM OF THE CENTURY was going to slam into STL. Monday, my office closed at 3 and Jeremy's closed around 11. He ran to the sitter's house to get the kids and hunker down at home until I got there. I, of course, went to the grocery store with everyone else in the county and bought all the necessary items we would need to sustain life for the 23 days we would be 'snowed in'..


Both of our offices were closed on Tuesday and we waited for the snow to begin.. and waited and waited.. We ended up with about 3 inches of sleet and that's it. I was so incredibly disappointed.


We had fun with the kiddos as we waited and watched radar. Tuesday, we finger painted- with pudding. They loved it, but gosh, were they sticky. Lyla had dried pudding up her nose later that night. They went from their high chairs DIRECTLY into the Bath!



The following day, I had to go to work.. not fun.. while Jeremy stayed home with the kids. I think Dad has a new found appreciation for our sitters because he was exhausted by the time I got home. They played and played and played and, from what I understand, didn't nap so well.. Oh yeah, Jack got a hair cut too.. I was a little sad that I missed it, but the kid really needed it.

We also marked the twins 11th month bday.. Where oh where have the last 11 months gone??

Just a few tidbits on the twins growth this month-


Lyla:

• Finally popped 2 teeth!! Yay!
• Can wave bye bye (adorable!)
• Crawls like crazy and can pull up very easily. She also is practicing standing without holding on to anything. This girl is going to walk soon!
• Talks a lot... a lot. We aren't hearing any words just yet, but if I ask her to say Mama, she'll say Dadadada.. nice.
• Her favorite toy.. hnmm, that's a hard one. She pretty much loves whatever Jack is playing with at the time. She also has a thing for Jack's old car seat toy. It's a bug that when you pull it, it vibrates. She giggles and giggles with it.
• Bedtime is so easy for her. After her bottle, she will play for a little bit and let us know when she's tired. Eye rubs and yawns and off to bed she goes with a paci and her blankie. We don't hear a peep out of her until about 5:45-6:00 the next morning.

Jack:

• Popped teeth # 7 & 8 in the past week
• Starting to wave, but he gets a little excited and ends up smacking mom/dad in the face :)
• Is a crawling machine. He's all over the place and wow, is he fast. He can pull up very well and loves to pull up and hang on mommy's pants. Especially when she's holding Lyla!!
• Starting to talk.. so far, he can repeat "Duck" or "Guck" and "Dog" or "Gog". He knows that Charlie is a "Gog" and will look at Charlie or follow/pet/smack him and say Gog Gog Gog.. I'm going to go ahead and say that Dog is his first official word. The PAT lady said that first words need to be said with purpose and meaning/understanding. All the dadaddad and mamamama blabbers aren't being counted. Dog is his first word.
• Favorite toy- BY FAR his favorite toy is his Pillow Pet from Uncle John. He LOVES to snuggle with it. We can pull it out and Jack will crawl right up to it and lay his head down and snuggle right into it. It's so freaking cute!
• Bedtime.. sigh.. this is a touchy subject. After the sleep clinic, Jack did great. Went down easily and would sleep through the night. He still sleeps through the night, but bedtime isn't as easy as it was. He'll give us the signs of being ready for bed- snuggly, eye rubs, yawns, etc.. but once he's put in his crib, he'll scream for a good 20 minutes. I guess it's just something we'll have to get used to..

Here's a little snippet taken last night.. I don't think we should spend money on big toys for their bday.. cups are cheap!

Once an infertile...

I am so incredibly blessed. I have two beautiful, growing, thriving children who are happy, healthy and make me smile everyday. When we first got pregnant and found out we were having twins, everyone would ask what we (a) thought we were having and (b) what we wanted. My answer was always the same- I didn't know and it didn't matter. Every night I would pray that God would keep the two growing babies inside me healthy and happy. When we found out that we were having a boy and a girl, I'd like to think that we would have been just as excited if would have found out that we were having 2 boys/ 2 girls. They were healthy and growing like they should be- THAT was the most important thing to us. Every step of the way, their health has been my top priority.

Fast forward to today- Jack and Lyla are the best kids a mom could wish for, I should know. I did lots of wishing on lots of stars. I am one lucky woman. Recently, I read a blog entry from a fellow infertile who now has one year old twins. A friend of hers just found out she was pregnant. She had gotten knocked up the old fashioned way- assistance free. The blogger couldn't help but feel the jealous pains, even though she has two beautiful children of her own. I know exactly what she's talking about. I swear there is something in the water these days- I know so many pregnant women. Celebs, friends, friends of friends.. it seems like everyone is pregnant. And with every announcement, my heart hurts a little bit. I know that when Jeremy and I are ready to try again, it won't be easy for us. We will revisit all the fears and anxiety. There will be more shots and discussions about money. The guilt will set back in.

Jeremy's cousin is pregnant with her second child. She has a two year old little boy and both pregnancies were accomplished 'the old fashion way'. When she announced her first pregnancy, I was in the midst of infertility hell. We had been trying for almost a year and had just begun looking into our options. She had announced her pregnancy at Christmas, something Jeremy and I had dreamed of doing but weren't able to do. She also announced that she "would not be having a boy.. " The family teased her and low and behold, she found out she was having a boy. She locked herself in her room and refused to talk to anyone. SERIOUSLY.

Well, she's pregnant again and again, having a boy. Jeremy's mom congratulated her and she said that she wasn't ready to talk about it. The woman is having a HEALTHY baby. Isn't that ALL that should matter? I am not sure what my response to her will be if she makes a negative comment about the child growing inside of her. Part of me wants to remind her just how lucky she is to have a healthy child. The other part of me wants to scream at her.

I am grateful for my family. I love my children more than I ever thought possible. I am a mother, but I'm also an infertile. I know that infertility will always be a part of me, I will never forget the pain it has caused. I also know that my infertility has allowed me to appreciate the miracle that my children really are.

Lyla & Jack 10 months. Taken 1/20/11

Recent Favorite Pictures

Lyla in her Christmas PJ's on Christmas Morning

Jack at 9 months, not happy with the newly installed baby gates

Lyla playing in Doobie and BJ's kitchen with her keys

Holiday Pics.. a little late

Lyla's First Christmas- 9.5 months old

Jack's First Christmas- 9.5 months old.. chewing on a gift tag.. with giltter...

We survived the twins first Christmas and immediately decided that it was time to move. Our little starter home just cannot hold all of the stuff that Jack and Lyla got for Christmas.

This year, Christmas was a little different than it had been in years' past- it spanned 3 days instead of the usual 2. On Friday (Christmas Eve), we had plans for a playdate/lunchdate with some friends who live on the way to J's parents' house, but that morning, we got a call that their daughter had just been diagnosed with RSV. SOOOO, needless to say, we weren't going anywhere near that house. We headed out to Troy early and had a great evening with family. The kids were spoiled rotten and had more fun trying to eat the wrapping paper than playing with the gifts themselves.

Jack had a minor mishap that could have been a lot worse, had Gpa Tony not been sitting with him. J's grandma insists that we use the highchair that ALL of her grandkids used growing up. Not a big deal, I get it. This particular highchair doesn't have straps or anything to really secure the kids into it. I was making the babies' dinner when I heard Gpa Tony going "Whooooaaaa". I turned around and saw just the top of Jack's head in the seat- he had managed to slide down, under the tray and was headed for the floor. Tony had caught him, just in time. Thankfully, J's mom had brought one of her high chairs and so the kiddos took turns in the 'safe' chair eating their dinner.

We had a FUN first Christmas at our house the next morning and video taped the whole thing. Again, wrapping paper was more popular than the gifts themselves, but we still had fun watching them. After presents, the babies ate and went down for a nice nap. I think Jeremy and I even got to take a nap. It was a fantastically lazy Christmas day.

That evening, we had Christmas and a great dinner at my parents house. Instead of a bunch of gifts, my parents decided that our big gift would be a family trip this summer- somewhere in Colorado or Wyoming. I'm already nervous about flying with the twins, but it's a gift that I would much rather have than a few sweaters or something. We're looking forward to it!

The following day- the day after Christmas- we celebrated with my mom's family, which was a little weird. Normally, it's really fun, lots of laughing, drinking and fun, but this year it felt like no one wanted to be there. I hope this was just a one time thing, because I look forward to that Christmas the most.

Jumpin' Jack

Soooo, Jack has this new 'thing' at bedtime.. While Lyla goes to sleep pretty easily and without much drama, Jack just isn't tired. AT ALL. He's wired, actually. It's almost as if someone gave him a Red Bull.. He's all smiles and laughs and totally not ready for bed.

Last night, the babies had dinner around 5, bath around 6 and their bedtime bottle at about 6:30 or so- a typical bedtime routine these days. Lyla went down around 6:45, squawked a few times, so we'd go replace her paci.. but she was asleep by 7:10 or so. Jack drank his bottle and got pretty heavy eyed so I went to put him in bed and UP popped his head. I patted his back and he strained to see the projection on the ceiling from their sound machine, so I flipped him on his back (yes, my kid sleeps on his belly. It's what he prefers and has been rolling onto his tummy to sleep since he was 3 months old. I can't stop him.) so he could watch the show and snuck out of the room to pump.

About 3 minutes later, he started baby talking REALLLLLY loud, so Jeremy went to quiet him down and ended up just brining him back out into the family room. This is what happened:

Bananas and Dad out of town

Jeremy has been working a lot these days- like insane amounts. His company is doing several stores across the country and he is running things on many of them. His workload is insane and he has to travel to some of the locations to help out and learn what is being done. He's tired, I'm tired.. the babies were sick last week and they're stuffy and crabby which makes things more fun for all of us. Jeremy left Sunday afternoon to go to a remodel and so I've been on double duty.

Sunday night, my parents came over and helped with bedtime, which turned out to be a great thing because both babies were super high maintenance that night. Lyla was chatty and tired and refused to go to sleep. We could hear her blah blah blahing (her latest noise) for 30 minutes after we put her down. Jack was wired and definitely not tired. The house was a mess, the dishwasher needed to be emptied.. my parents were a huge help that night.

Last night, I was on my own. My mom called to see how things were going and if I needed help and I told her I thought I had everything under control. I had picked the babies up from the sitter at 4:15 and she thought they would probably need to be fed by the time I got home. I put them in their highchairs and let them play with their sippy cups while I made their dinner- cereal and bananas. They ate great- Lyla likes to talk while she eats- num num num num la la lala lalala.. she's very noisy these days. Jack has learned how to give raspberries which is super cute, but not while you're trying to feed him. He and I were both covered in slimy bananas by the time he was finished eating. After dinner, I changed them into their pjs and they played in their exersaucers while I cleaned the mess, made bottles and started to steam some peas for them for later this week.

Around 6:15 Jack started to rub his eyes and get a little fussy. I warmed a bottle for him and he fell asleep about 3.5 ounces in. He went right to bed, no problem. 6:30, one kid down.. one to go.

Lyla played a little while longer, then started to fuss so I warmed her bottle and attempted to feed her. She was grabby for the bottle, but kept fussing about it. She'd take a few swallows then get really angry so I'd sit her up to burp and she'd grab for the bottle again. Finally she took 4 oz and seemed to be finished, so I stood up to burp her and take her to bed when the girl literally exploded all over the two of us. I have never seen such a geyser of bananas, milk and cereal come out of a child with such force and height. All I could do was stand there and make sure her airway was clear when the river of not quite digested food had finished flowing from her tiny mouth. When she was finished she looked up at me and smiled. The kid didn't seem the least bit fazed by what had just happened. I was awestruck.. and covered in bananas. We snuck into the babies' room to get a change of clothes for her and some wet wipes for a quick wipe down. Her pjs were toast.. soaked and stinky. I got her changed and just happened to glance at myself in the mirror.

This really doesn't even do it justice. Most of the river of slime ended up DOWN my shirt and IN my BRA. My shirt is wet from being soaked from the inside out. The vast amount of bananas that were found in my bra was amazing. It was almost as if I just poured the mashed bananas into my bra.

I cleaned myself up (ended up getting bananas in my hair in the process) and gave the girl another few ounces because I knew there was NOTHING left in her stomach. She went right to bed after that, waking up at 5:15 this morning.

Moral of the story- Mom can handle the babies, a huge river of slimy bananas in her bra and end the night making peaches and peas for the babies all before 9:15 all by herself. Yay me :)

PS- This isn't the first time Lyla has exploded on one of her parents.. but Dad just got covered in milk

Few Random Pictures 6 months old

MU Tailgate

Jeremy and I took the babies to their first MU Game on September 25th. I feel like I spent the whole week beforehand trying to get everything together for the 2 hours drive to Columbia- cooking things for the tailgate, prepping the kids outfits, doing laundry and cleaning the house because we wouldn't be home that day until late and those things needed to get done at some point.

The game started at 1:00, and our tailgate started at 10:00, so we knew we were going to have to leave the house early to get there in time. We left the house by 8 and the babies slept almost the whole way there. We picked up my sister at 10:15 because she was going to be our 3rd set of hands and wanted to spend some time with the munchkins (we are SOOO lucky to have such an involved aunt!!).

The plan was to have Jeremy drop us, the babies and all of our STUFF off at the tailgate then park the car somewhere else because we didn't have a parking pass. The girl at the entrance of the lot wasn't going to let us even pull into the lot, but after a lot of convinceing that we had TWO VERY SMALL BABIES, she finally let us in. We parked right next to our tailgater friends and never left the lot...oops! There were plenty of spots available and the parking lot police never said a word to them.

The babies were fantastic the whole time. They each took naps, ate their bottles and were great sports the whole time. We decided not to go into the game which turned out to be a good idea-it was loud and hot in the stadium and not really baby appropriate. Plus they got more time with Aunt Caitie. We loaded up around 4, took Aunt Cait home and were on the road by 4:30. The slept until about Warrenton then were very vocal about needing bottles. We pulled into a parking lot, gave them their bottles and headed home. It really could not have been a better day.

Sitters

No, not the 16 year old kind that you hope don't invite their boyfriends over for make out sessions while they are supposed to be watching your precious little ones.. I'm talking about having two 7 month olds that are now officially sitting.. well, with a little help. We have had a few tumbles, but they're doing great. Jack gets a huge smile on his face when he loses his balance and hits the floor. Lyla squawks in frustration until someone rights her.

TaTa's

I have been a little neurotic about BF over the past 6 months. I believe the BM is the best thing for the twins and luckily, I've been able to keep up with their feedings and I have a good amount stock piled in the deep freeze. When the twins were about a month old, I was having trouble getting my supply established and ended up taking Fenugreek for a few weeks. That got things rolling and things have been great ever since. I think both babies have each only had one bottle of formula since they were born. That being said, I totally understand that BFing isn't for everyone. Some can't get a supply established, some don't have the time- every one has their reasons. I'm for feeding babies- doesn't matter which you feed them :)
Honestly, I'm an EP (exclusive pumper). I have been since the babies were about 6 weeks old. It's just a lot easier for me to pump and bottle feed them. Yes, it takes a bit more time, but when you have two it's a lot easier to have my husband, mother, mother in law, sister, etc. feed one while I feed the other. My friends always ask just how much I'm able to pump and they're always amazed. I pump 5 times a day. My first pump is always my largest- about 20 oz and I do that around 5:00 AM. My second pump is about 14-16 oz sometime between 9-10AM. Third is about 12 oz- 2-3PM, forth 6:30ish and I get about 10-12 oz and fifth is right before bed. I usually only get about 8 oz then. Yes, I'm a dairy cow. I don't mind the pumping and it has been going really well for me. I love to be able to eat pretty much whatever I want- I weigh less now than I did before I got pregnant. I really love that I save us about $200/ month in formula.
Why all this talk about TaTas? Well, I have a clogged duct. It hurts like hell and I'm afraid it's getting infected. I've been working on it for more than 24hrs and it still won't unclog. Heating pads, hot showers, massive amounts of pumping.. nothing seems to be working and I'm starting to stress. I almost stayed home from work so I could work on getting it out. I brought my heating pad to work with me so I could heat and pump at the same time.
It's time to pump now- fingers crossed that I can work this sucker out!!!

UPDATE- The clog came out.. after lots of massaging and hoping and swearing and 'please oh please.. it came out. No medical intervention needed.. WHEW.

Oh, so tired

Jack and Lyla are teething. Well, at least we think they are. Jack has already popped two teeth and is absolutely adorable. He grins and two tiny perfect white teeth can be seen. Lyla has been drooling, chewing, gnawing, etc on everything she can get her hands on. She has recently began crying fits for no reason which leads me to believe we're going to see a tooth soon (fingers crossed).
Needless to say, with all of this teething going on our house hasn't been so quiet the past few weeks. We got a few good nights when we started cereal, but things have returned to 'normal' and we're up 2+ times a night. Lyla, our normally good sleeper, has been waking up a few times a night and just won't go back to bed. We've been resorting to putting her in her swing and sleeping on the couch- NOT something that I want to become a habit.
Yesterday, I was exhausted. I think I woke up around 3:45 and never really got back to bed. When I got to work, I tried to use my garage door opener to open the gate at my office.. it didn't work.

6 Months Old

Okay, so I've been away for a while. Let's just say life with twins is insane. It's loud, messy and so much fun. There have been tears (both mine and the twins) and there has been screaming, (me, Jeremy, the babies- we have screamed at one point or another) but there have also been moments so great, I never in a million years could have imagined how great these kids have made me feel. I feel like I've finally found something that I'm meant to do- and I'm good at it. Granted, I'm tired and sore and my house has definitely looked like a tornado hit it on more than one occasion, but I am loving my life right now.
Jack and Lyla are 6 months old now. She weighs 14lbs 8oz and he weighs 14lbs 1oz. She has a temper like her father and he is laid back like me. Her eyes are the same blue as my mom's and we think his are going to be grey/blue.. hazel? She loves her pacifier and hates green beans. He loves his Big Bird and is a great eater. He has 2 teeth (lower middle ones) and she still doesn't have any. These days, neither of them are sleeping though the night. Jack loves to cuddle and Lyla would rather do her own thing. I love their smiles, their smells (even the stinky ones) and spending time with them.
My goal is to begin posting several times a week. I have loved looking back at this blog and seeing how things were a year ago. I only wish I would have kept better notes over the past 6 months! So, starting today expect at least 3 posts a week from me. And more pictures- LOTS of pictures :)

The Birth Story

After we left Dr. Wagner's office, we headed home to pack and take Charlie to my parents' house. The plan was that family would be notified when we were going to the hospital, but in order to keep some level of sanity, we requested that they wait for a second phone call from us before they headed to the hospital. We also requested that they refrain from sharing the news with anyone as we wanted to be the ones to announce the birth of our kids..more on this later..


We went home, grabbed our overnight bag, a few last minute things and the dog and headed to my parents house who live about 10 minutes from us. The plan was to surprise them when we got there, but my brother was the only one home and the first to find out that we were having the babies that evening. We called and texted family on our way to the hospital, all the time, not really in any hurry. We even debated whether or not we should stop and get something to eat, but decided against it because I wasn't supposed to eat anything before surgery.

The phone calls to our parents were pretty funny. My dad's response was full of 4 letter words, Jeremy's mom didn't quite realize what he was telling her and it took a moment to sink in.

We arrived at the hospital around 6:30 PM and were settled in the room by about 7:00. I was hooked up the standard ToCo (contraction) monitor, had an IV and cath put in and was checked by a nurse to see how things were progressing. Much to ALL of our surprise, I was at 7, pushing 8cm and wasn't really in any pain. Again, I was just uncomfortable. She left to speak to a doctor and to call anesthesia to speed things up. Jeremy and I watched a little TV (I don't remember what was on) and we watched the line on the contraction monitor continue to rise and I continued to feel more and more uncomfortable- never in any pain, just uncomfortable. At one point, Jeremy asked if I needed anything and I told him that in about 2 minutes, I was going to send him to find a doctor or a nurse. At that precise moment, my doctor, the anesthesiologist and several nurses walked in in full scrubs. Jeremy took that as his signal to go put on his scrubs.
I was wheeled into the surgical room,which was FREEZING, at 8:00PM. Jeremy was asked to wait outside until I had been prepped. "Prep" consisted of getting a spinal block (didn't feel a thing) and my belly getting scrubbed and cleaned. There were about 14 people in the room, including myself and my doctor- nurses for me, a doctor and a few nurses for each of the babies, the anesthesiologist, the room was full. While I was being prepped, I watched the nurses get the two isolets ready for the babies and realized I went to grade school with one of the nurses. Talk about a small world!

After I had been prepped, I was laying on the table waiting for Jeremy to come in. One of the nurses told me that my mother in law had stopped her and wanted her to tell me that they were there. As if I was waiting on pins and needles and wouldn't start before they arrived.. sigh...

Jeremy was allowed in at about 8:10 and the blue screen was pulled up. The anesthesiologist stood behind me and I laid on the table with my arms out to my sides- think Jesus on the cross. He narrated what my doctor was doing for me and when the time came, he told Jeremy to stand up and look- they were pulling Baby A (Lyla) out (8:19PM) . Even though I couldn't feel anything from the waist down, I felt the weight of her leave my body. She was rushed to one of the isolets and her team began working on her. I remember hearing her 'gurgle', but I wasn't concerned. I knew she was okay. I'd never been worried about her. Something told me that she was going to be fine. Then, I heard the anaesthesiologist tell Jeremy to look over the screen again because they were lifting Baby B (Jack) out (8:20PM). Jeremy peeked over the screen just as Jack was pull butt-first out of my abdomen, screaming and mad as hell. I got a quick peek at him before the nurses started working on him before I heard the anaesthesiologist ask Jeremy if he was okay. I looked up and Jeremy was WHITE. He sat down and had a wet cloth put on his neck. Poor guy almost passed out. Turns out, Lyla was still being worked on- she inhaled a bit of fluid right before they pulled her out and was having some problems breathing. We have a few pictures of her while they were working on her and she was a bit blue. The combination of seeing our blue child and watching Jack be pulled butt-first from my stomach was a bit much for him. After a short break, he was up again snapping pictures of our kiddos.

While Jack was on the table, he peed all over one of the nurses. They were able to stabilize Lyla and before we knew it, Jeremy was holding both babies. My arms were still spread out and I was being sewn up, so I couldn't really hold either of them, but I breathed them in as much as I could before they were wisked away to the Special Care nursery.

A few things that I remember about the c-section itself..

1. The spinal block didn't hurt at all- just a small pinch and that was it.

2. I felt the babies being pulled out of me. No pain, but I felt the weight of them leaving me.

3. The room is FREEZING

4. The suction container was right by my head- literally, I just had to turn my head to the right and I could see everything that they were sucking out of me. Good thing I have a strong stomach.. because I got to see all sorts of nastyness.

5. The anaesthesiologist was great. He made sure Jeremy took pictures of the babies and he even took our first family picture.

After I was sewn up, by a resident (ARGHHHHH), I was sat up and got to see an incredibly flat stomach for the first time in months. The nurses even commented on how it didn't even look like I'd just had twins. SO nice to hear :) They scrubbed me down, cleaned my belly and back. Jeremy told me later that it was pretty nasty and bloody. Nice. Then I was moved onto another bed and wheeled back into the room. I remember it was about 9:00 because the anesthesiologist requested that a certain channel be turned on because the new series "Parenthood" was beginning. Looking back, it was very appropriate.

Our parents were allowed back into the room and were incredibly hyped up. They had seen the babies pass by in the isolets and were able to catch a glimpse of them. At one point, Jeremy asked if they wanted to know their names. They were all very happy with our choices. I started to get the shakes, which continues for quite some time, as a result of the surgery. I couldn't move from the waist down, but my whole body was shaking. I was trying to drink some water and finally gave up because I was afraid I was going to pour it all over myself.

Before I was moved into the room I would call home for the next 4 days, I was wheeled into the Special Care nursery so I could see the babies. I was able to see both of them, but I could only hold Lyla. Jack was put on oxygen because his levels had dropped a bit, but Lyla was going strong. When they were born, they got hats with stickers put on them #1, #2.. I'm afraid that Lyla will never let Jack forget that she was #1 from the day they were born.

After spending a few short moments with the babies, I was wheeled into my room, vitals were taken and Jeremy and I had a few quiet moments to ourselves. By that time, it was after midnight and we were pooped. He tried to sleep on the futon in the room, but the constant checking of my vitals throughout the night kept him up. At one point, the nurse noticed that my incision was seeping and called the doctor who was on call that night. I think it was about 3AM and the doctor had to have been 85 years old. There was concern that I was going to have to go back into surgery again to have it resewn.. damn resident! They changed my dressing and watched it more closely and the fear of going into surgery again brought back the shakes. Badly. It was finally decided that it was just a pocket of fluid and surgery was not needed. Whew..

I awoke the next morning to gigantic boobs. They were rock hard and oh-my-goodness big. A nurse wheeled in a pump and I began pumping the precious gold colostrum. Every drop was important and Jeremy used the tiny syringe to get every little bit to take down to the babies. The visitors started arriving and Jeremy would take them to the Special Care nursery to see the babies, but I still hadn't gotten down there. I still had an IV and cath, and moving even the slighted bit hurt so bad. Finally my mom showed up and got me loaded into a wheelchair and she and Jeremy took me down to see my babies. They were so tiny. I breathed them in, loved on them and kissed them as much as I could.

Gone way too long

A lot has happened since my last post. I'll try to summarize my last 6 months as briefly as I can.

-December 11, 2009
I went to a perinatologist to begin fetal monitoring. During that visit, the ultrasound tech noticed that my uterus was contracting and cervix was funneling. Jeremy and I met briefly with a doctor who immediately had me admitted to St. Luke's. I was hooked up to fetal monitors, contraction monitors, given terbutaline to stop the contractions and told to get comfortable- I would be there for awhile. I stayed in the hospital until December 28th.

- December 13, 2009
Jeremy got to attend his first baby shower, because I was in the hospital. He learned the dos and don'ts of showers and did a great job opening gifts, showing them off and passing them around.

-December 25, 2009
Spent Christmas in the hospital. While this sounds horrible, it actually wasn't all that bad. Christmas came to me. My mom brought a small tree and decorated it. I did a lot of my shopping on-line and Jeremy did most of the wrapping. Jeremy attended both of our families' Christmases and brought presents to the hospital.

-January & February
were fairly uneventful. I went back into the hospital a few times. My longest visit was 3 days, shortest was 5 hours. We watched my belly grow and I continued to work from home, laying on my side, typing and editing pictures with one hand. My sister played nurse and stayed with me while she was home on break. She made my lunch, filled my water and entertained Charlie while I stayed in bed. She was a HUGE help and I was sad to see her go back to school. Although, I'm sure she was ready to get back to a much more exciting lifestyle. My brother and sister in law came over and helped Jeremy paint the nursery. My mom and sister painted a border and my extremely talented cousin painted the border to match the babies bedding. Jeremy installed a closet system and organized the closet for the babies. The nursery was finished!

Jeremy was able to take me to my weekly doctors appointments. Around week 32, my cervix really started to thin and I was 2cm dilated. My doctor said the babies could come any day, so we prepared. The following weeks' doctor visits showed pretty much no change. At each appointment, my doctor would say "Any day now" and the days ticked on.. still no babies. Once I hit 35 weeks, I started to venture out of bed a little more and made a trip to Costco and Target. Jeremy shot video footage of me attempting to steer through Target safely. We also toured MOBAP. Jeremy learned he's not the best wheelchair driver and I'm not the best passenger. We ended up denting a few walls and I managed to drop my scarf into the path of the wheel just as we were getting on an elevator with our tour group. Untangling scarfs while trying to exit an elevator is not an easy thing to do.

-February 28, 2010
I made it to 35 weeks and was allowed to go to the shower my sister and aunt threw me. Dr. Wagner told me to finish my procardia prescription and not refill it, so the morning of the shower, I took my last Procardia. It took me all morning to get ready for the shower. I took a shower, then a nap, did my hair, then took another nap, did my make-up and got dressed. At 35 weeks and 3 days pregnant with twins, I was tired. I felt huge (having gained a whooping 30lbs), and was just plain worn out. The shower was wonderful. Tons of great food, lots of good friends who I hadn't seen a while and I was finally out of bed! I was convinced that the babies were going to arrive the following day and was totally fine with that.

-March 1 2010
No babies. I was super tired, really uncomfortable and not sleeping well at night.

-March 2, 2010
My last day of being able to 'work from home'. HR had only approved 90 days of telecommuting and this was my last day. I would begin maternity leave the following day, regardless if there were babies or not. I had my daily conversation with my boss, filled him on on where things stood on several projects and called it a day around 4PM.
I had my weekly check-up at 4:30 and on the way, Jeremy and I joked about how there was probably still no change in things and that I was going to end up carrying these kids to term. During my appointment, we discussed scheduling a c-section around St. Patrick's Day- about 2 weeks away. Dr. Wagner asked how I was feeling and while I felt uncomfortable, I wasn't in any pain . The thought of waiting another two weeks wasn't entirely something that I wanted to do, but it was attainable. I'd already spent the last 14 weeks on bed rest, what was another 2? He checked my cervix and said that maybe we wouldn't have to schedule it after all.. I was FINALLY at 5cm. I remember him asking if we wanted to have some babies that night. Jeremy had to ask him if he was serious- our doctor is pretty sarcastic and quite possibly could have been joking. He called MOBAP and scheduled me for a 9:00PM surgery, told us to go home, get our stuff and he'd meet us at the hospital.

Bad Blogger..and the B-word

I know, I know.. I've been a bad blogger. To recap our last few weeks:

1. I survived my marathon Halloween weekend- 100 undergrads visiting..all left entertained and well-fed.
2. We went to Sanibel Island with Superman's family to celebrate his mom's 50th. The weather was great, the food was good. I didn't come back with a tan, but I did sport a bikini for a little bit. It was a well-needed vacation!
3. Superman has felt BOTH babies move. For the longest time, they would kick and bounce and as soon as Superman would put his hand on my belly, they would stop.. darn kids! Then, one night, baby girl was bouncing like crazy. I told Superman to get comfortable because he was going to sit there until he felt her- after about 3 minutes, she gave a real good kick and his face lit up like a Christmas tree. He felt baby boy the next night. Ahh, I loved it!
4. We have been slowly working on getting the babies room ready- SLOWLY- the furniture has finally been moved out, the closet is cleaned.. we're moving in the right direction.

Okay, now for the real news.. I had my big 21 week ultrasound last Monday. Both babies look fantastic- measuring ahead of schedule and looking perfect in every way. A huge relief! My fluid levels looked great- the tech was very chatty and explained everything as she checked each baby. We had a minor scare with baby boy's heart rate. At first check, it was really high, but she got a second reading a moment later that was just a little off from his sister's. At the end of our appt., I remembered that my doctor had requested a cervix check as well, so I asked her how my cervix looked. She said that she had forgotten to check it and sent me off to empty my bladder (again). She broke out the wand (hello again, my old friend) and got down to business. She asked what I did for a living- I was adamant that I sat at a desk all day.. no heavy lifting, etc.. I could see where this was going.. Any bleeding? No, none- not a drop. Cramping? No.. My cervix was measuring at 2.3, which is a LOT thinner than they would have liked, so off she went to consult a doctor. I told Superman she was going to come back and I was going to be put on bedrest. He told me not to jump to conclusions and wait and see what she said.
A few moments later she came in and sat down.. not a good sign, right? And so she began- no work, no driving, no laundry, no cooking.. bedrest. UGH. I hated bedrest the 24 hours I was on it after my transfer.. and this time, it's INDEFINITE.
So, here's what we know so far:

• Bedrest at least until my follow-up on Tuesday afternoon
• Weekly ultrasounds to check my cervix (and hopefully a baby or two :)
• A shot in the behind (can't remember what it is called, I'll have to ask again tomorrow) once a week
• Working from home- THANKFULLY my boss looked into what we need to do should this happen- a simple note from my dr saying I can't drive in to work, but I can work from home and my FMLA time is safe. I am learning it's really hard to type laying on your left side (best for blood flow to the uterus..) but I'm getting things done.
• The dog is happy that someone is home all day, but he spends most of it staring at me. I think he's bored and I wish there was more I could to than let him out into the back yard every few hours.. he's staring at me as I type this (from my left side)..
• The babies are safe. I'm willing to lay on my side as long as I have to- these two have a lot more cooking to do.. and if I have to deal with a few cramps in my side.. I'll do it. Bring it on.

Superman hit LazyBoy on our way home from the doctor last week. He picked out an over-stuffed rocker, recliner that will move into the babies' room once they arrive. It's comfy and has been my spot since it's arrival. He has been wonderful and is very quick to end any pity parties I may be throwing for myself.. Today, he has been feeding me lines about how he can't wait to decorate the house for Christmas- something I usually have to BEG him to help me with.. He thinks it'll help brighten my days spent at home- I am so blessed.

Spoiled..

Working a long and late next few days..I'm tired. I'm uncomfortable. I'd rather be at home with Superman and the dog.. watching ANYTHING on TV.. but my weekend will be spent working.
I just received the following email from Superman:

"I was just thinking about how lucky I am to have a woman like you be the mother of my children… I am the luckiest man of the planet!"

I'm incredibly spoiled and so lucky to have such a great guy to call my husband! I can't wait to get home and give him a hug and a kiss!

Survey Says...

How far along? 17 Weeks
Total Weight Gain/Loss? +8lbs total
Maternity Clothes? Wearing maternity pants (why don't we wear them ALL the time?!) Still in my own tops.
Stretch Marks? Nada
Sleep? Not the best these days.. I'm sleeping more lightly and wake up a few times at night.
Best Moment This Week? Feeling both munchkins moving!
Food Cravings? Not really. I'm kinda over food these days. Nothing gets me excited anymore.
Genders? Pink and Blue
Labor Signs? Started having Braxton Hicks contractions last week. I'm not a fan. But I did get to call the after hours emergency exchange this weekend.. which was fun.
Belly Button? It's getting less and less 'deep' if that makes any sense.. I'm seeing parts of it I've never seen before and am taking advantage to clean all those little crevasses.. Also, I think I'll have an outtie in the next month or so..
What I miss? besides wearing my old clothes.. nothing. I really like being pregnant! Maybe sushi ...?
What am I looking forward to? Next week's trip to Ft. Meyers.. the beach!
Weekly Wisdom? Comfy shoes are a must! I haven't taken my Uggs off all week.
Milestones? MIGHT have nursery bedding picked out... unless I find something else I like.

Week 15 Glamour Shots

On Tuesday, Superman and I went to the doctor for my week 15 visit. We had an ultrasound scheduled at 1:30 and an appt to meet with Dr. W at 2:00. Have I said how much I LOVE ultrasounds!?!? I LOVE them. I wish Superman would pull a Tom Cruise and buy an U/S machine.. probably not going to happen, but I love the few minutes I get to peek in on them.

The first question the U/S tech asked us was if we wanted to know the sex of the babies. I had read that it is possible to tell at week 15, but I didn't want to get my hopes up. She said that we shouldn't go out and buy pink or blue based on what she found because 15 weeks is still really too early to tell. We agreed that we wouldn't hold her to whatever she said and she started the exam. Superman broke out the iphone video camera :) She checked placenta placement (all was well), heartbeats (two.. strong ones!), and started with Baby A, which is the lower of the two. (Side note: She also confirmed that the little bubbles I had been feeling in that area are, in fact, the baby and not gas as I thought it might be!!) She did her scan on the baby, measuring head, belly and femur (all perfect).. then asked if we wanted the sex of the baby to be on camera (superman was filming) because she was TYPING the sex of baby A on the screen. We said yes, thinking it'll be a great way to share with our families. She performed the same scans on Baby B, who is on my upper left side- all was well and almost identical to Baby A's measurements. They are both 5oz and measuring at 16 weeks, 2 days.. ahead of schedule :) Baby B was in a funny position, so it took her a few moments to find the right 'parts', but we know what Baby B is now too. As I was cleaning my belly, she told us that she was 90% sure that she was correct in sexing the babes and the only reason that she couldn't say 100% was that I was only 15 weeks. She said that the quality of the image couldn't have been better so we could go shopping if we wanted :)

FULLY satisfied with the u/s visit, we left knowing what we're having and several pictures to show off. My appt with Dr. W was pretty uneventful- I'm measuring at 20 weeks. My weight is right where is should be and he said that I should eat as much/often as I need to keep myself from getting nauseous- what a guy!!

Here are the lastest baby pics- again, Baby B wasn't very cooperative, so we didn't get a good profile shot, just a great tootsie pic!

Baby A is a GIRL!!

Baby B is a BOY!!

14 Weeks

This week's big developments: Your babies can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck their thumbs! Thanks to brain impulses, their facial muscles are getting a workout as their tiny features form one expression after another. Their kidneys are producing urine, which they release into the amniotic fluid around them — a process they'll keep up until birth. They can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch them sucking their thumbs.
In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, they measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and weigh 1 1/2 ounces. Their body's growing faster than their head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, their arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of their bodies. (Their legs still have some lengthening to do.) They are starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over their bodies. Your babies' livers starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and their spleens starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

Survey Says..

How far along? 13 Weeks
Total Weight Gain/Loss? +6lbs total
Maternity Clothes? Still in my clothes.. for now.
Stretch Marks? Nope
Sleep? Back to getting up to go to the bathroom 2-3 times a night. Also, not so comfortable in bed.
Best Moment This Week? Opening SUPER CUTE gift from friend. TONS of stretch mark prevention.
Food Cravings? Not much. My appetite has dropped and I get full much more quickly now..
Genders? Not for at least another month.
Labor Signs? Nope
Belly Button? Looking kind of stretched these days.
What I miss? Zipping my pants..
What am I looking forward to? Big bday this weekend..
Weekly Wisdom? It's best to check to make sure your bright pink/orange polka dot underwear aren't showing as you walk around your entire office complex for 45 minutes... bella bands can ride up and if you're not zipping your pants, make sure your shirt is long enough to cover your undies.
Milestones? No more puking in the shower!