33 Week Doctor Appt

• 33.6 Weeks
• Still measuring 36 weeks. (I think my uterus is higher on the left side than on the left.. so when they measure down the middle it's not completely accurate. Just my thoughts :p)
• I am 1.5cm dilated!! I know you can stay at 1-2 cm for weeks (which I'm hoping is the case), but this dilatiion really makes it seem like the birth is coming up fast. Also the babies are very low.
• When a doctor tells you they are going to "gently" check your cervix, "gently" is a very subjecive term.
• I half jokingly asked my doctor if this could mean I would be 6cm by tonight. She said no, but that it would be nice if I were 6cm at my next appointment! (Which is a week from today.) I was thinking, "Wait! I thought our goal was at least 36 weeks??" What I said was, "I'd like to go a little further than that." She said, "we'll see." Thanks for the vote of confidence ;) She said her last patient that was as small as me with twins had them at 34 weeks, and (after I asked) she said it seemed like her smaller patients did deliver earlier. So really these babies could come anytime, even as early as next week! (I still think they will hang in there though)
• My blood pressure is still good.
• My next ultrasound is Monday. Can't wait to see if they are still growing well in there! (And if Mr. "A" is still head down)
• Weight gain: 42 pounds.

Other ThoughtS:

• It is definitely getting harder to move around. It's usually painful when I go from sitting to standing due to the pelvic pressure. It's also painful when I flip from my right to left side at night, or when I get up to use the restroom at night.
• These boys are wearing me out! I am tired all the time! Whenever I feel energy, I take advantage of it to clean the house & make sure we are ready for babies. Yesterday I organized our closet so I wouldn't have to worry about it later. I also set up a changing table in our bedroom, and made room for their pack 'n plays in our room. Then I packed the diaper bag.. not sure why I thought that was necessary. Then I was completely worn out. Today my two big activities were cleaning the kitchen and going to the doctor. And I am worn out again.
• We still need to find a pediatrician. I should probably get working on that.
• This should be my last week of work!! (If all goes well). I requested PTO for the first two weeks of August. I'm pretty sure it has been approved, but I'm not 100% certain. I'm really not sure I can physically keep working after this week if it doesn't get approved :(
• My belly gets into all sorts of strange shapes when the babies move.. it is so funny for Alan & me to watch.
• I am really excited to meet my boys & bring them home with me!

32 Week Sono/Appt

First a few pictures to show my size:
I got two maraschino cherries, one for each baby. This was at a 50's murder mystery dinner party last Saturday night.

Alan and I in character :) I'm a former homecoming queen and he is a jock/quarterback.

I this this picture is hilarious because it looks like I'm trying to turn to face Alan, but my stomach got stuck :)

So now that you know how big I am this week, here are the stats from my ultrasound last Friday & my OB appt today.

32 Weeks

Measuring 36 Weeks (not sure why it's less than last week, but my doctor wasn't concerned)

Weight:

Baby A weighs: 4 pounds 8 ounces

Baby B weighs: 3 pounds 13 ounces

That is a 14% size discordance. They get concerned when the size difference is more than 25%, so I am having another ultrasound in 2 weeks to follow up on their growth. (She was originally going to have me wait 3 weeks for my next sono.) Hopefully they will both grow well between now and then!

My weight: Well that's just depressing. I've gained about 40 pounds already :(

Position:

Baby A is head down and below Baby B. He is pushing Baby B's feet away from his face, just like he was doing in my last sono. They are fighting already!! If he stays in this head down position, I can have a vaginal delivery. (My OB's rate of vag vs c-section for twins is 80% vaginal. That's really good!)

Baby B is transverse, laying above Baby A. (And kicking him, lol)

Work Status:

So I ask every week if I can get a note to get me out of work. Still didn't get a note today, lol. Stil no medical reason. I am trying to get canceled about once a week though. When I told me OB that, she said that was good practice :) I just get soo tired.

Delivery Info:

Today I asked what my chances were of getting my doctor at delivery. She said she tries really hard to deliver her own twins, and that she has delivered all of her own twins except one set in the last 10 years. Those twins apparantly "fell out" since they were the mom's 4th and 5th children.

Hmm, I think that is all of the new information. I will be 33 weeks tomorrow. I can't believe it! These babies will be here before we know it.

31 Week Doctor Appointment

• 31.6 weeks
• Measuring 37 weeks
• My cervix is shortening, but not dilating. My OB said that is normal.
• I will be delivering in the OR with an epidural. This is for the safety of the second twin, in case a c section is needed or if she needs to do a beech extraction. In case of a breech extraction, it is safer if I am not fighting the doctor.
• There's still no medical reason to quit work, so I guess I will work through one more week. I already requested to be canceled tomorrow and our census is pretty low, so my chances are good. That means I'd only have one shift this week :)

Weekly Twin Belly Pics

My twin pregnancy belly from the positive sign 'til now. 31 week picture taken yesterday. (Music will be added when I have more energy)

Some thoughts on my pregnancy today:

• I am so thankful for all of my friends and family. The nursery is pretty well stocked with diapers, wipes, clothes, blankets, toys, books, decorations and other baby items. The majority of this has been gifts. We are very appreciative :) I can't wait to begin using everything :)
• I have gotten a lot of comments about my belly "dropping". I think everyone is right, because I used to have almost constant rib pain, and I haven't felt any pain for about a week or so. I just hope my body doesn't think it's time to deliver!
• I have also gotten a lot of comments that it looks like I am about to tip over. It's true that I am not very evenly proportioned at the moment.
• I'm still working part time. I had a pretty good week this last week, although I still get pretty tired. Thankfully the charge nurses are trying to give me the easier assignments, which I am very thankful for!
• Today Alan & I went grocery shopping, and I am more worn out now than after my last couple of 12 hour shifts. I don't know what the deal is with that. I feel like I can barely walk because of the tiredness & the pressure I feel when I walk :(
• Tomorrow I have a Doctor's appointment, and I want to discuss two things with her: When I should take off work, and more of what to expect at delivery
• I've already gained 35 pounds. And my waistline is huge. That figure will remain confidential at the moment ;)
• I still love watching and feeling my babies move :)

Am I Really That Big?

A few funny pictures. 30 weeks pregnant at my parents' house. My sister-in-law was having fun taking a mini photoshoot.

Working while Preggo

Before I got pregnant, my plan was to work full time until I delivered. (That would be 3 twelve hour shifts a week). That's on your feet!! I am so glad I didn't do this. Earlier this year I requested to be put on the list for part time... (for after I delivered) and I was offered the position right away. So I have been part time (2 twelve hour shifts/week) since around February of this year. Which has been awesome for being pregnant! I have been able to pick up some extra shifts & do some required education stuff without overdoing it.

However.

Now I am 30 weeks pregnant with twins. I am humongous. I have probably 7-8 pounds of baby in there already. (Not to mention the two separate swimming pools I am providing them.) My feet hurt when I stand too long. I have pelvic pressure when I stand too fast or too long. And my contractions increase when I stand too long. Not to mention I get tired soo easily now it is pathetic!!

Last Wednesday at work, I actually requested an easier assignment than they had assigned. I
got the easier assignment, during which I was able to sit quite a bit. However, that day was also the deadline for some audits that I do for the unit, and the last day to do this required central line education seminar. So even though all my body wanted to do was go home and sleep from about 4pm on, I was on my feet taking care of my babies, completing the audits, and then I had to stand on my feet at the education thing (after my shift was over). I got home around 8:15pm.

It seemed like that last bit of standing on my feet was really not good for me. I started to almost feel crampy (which I knew was not good), and I was having a lot of contractions. It was actually uncomfortable contractions (usually they are painless). I knew I just needed to go home & lay down.. so that's what I did. It really took me about 3 hours of laying down before I felt better. (Of course if I hadn't started to feel better, I would've called the hospital). Alan took care of me and brought me food during this time. :) I could get used to being pampered :) That experience was very scary for me though. I thought my water was going to break, because of all the pressure I was feeling, and it really made me think I should start me leave from work. Alan really thinks I should start my leave too.

Taking leave from work when you are only 30 weeks pregnant though is not easy. Especially if you want to come back to your job. You can only take 12 weeks off with your job guaranteed. And I'm not sure if I can even start taking off without a doctor's note. Soo.. I may just wait until I see my doctor again & see if she will give me a note. That's only two more shifts at work. I can do that right? I was scheduled to work today, but I requested to be cancelled. Thankfully they cancelled me, because I ended up sleeping in until almost 12:00. (Would've had to get up at 5:00am for work). That's seven extra hours of rest that I was obviously needing! In fact, I probably would have slept longer, but Alan called me at about 11:40 and asked about lunch. I told him I would make something simple since I needed to get up anyway, and I needed to eat. :P

So I am kind of back and forth right now. I enjoy my job & I like my coworkers, I just don't think I can physically work much longer. I really hope my doctor agrees with me and gives me some kind of note. Oh, I also wish there were different laws for multiples pregnancies. Like extra time off. Because if I take extra time off to take it easy before they are born, that's less time I have with my two babies after they are born. (Even though I'm only planning on going back 1 day a week). Sigh... America needs to get on these laws. Because even though I want to go back 1 day a week after I have the babies (the grandparents would take care of them, and I would get some time away)... I would really like at least 3 months at home with them before I do that. Which I probably won't get if I start my leave early. So complicated :-/