35-37 weeks: The final countdown

37 weeks. Technically, yesterday would mark 37 weeks and the babies would've been here by mid-morning (according to the scheduled c section we planned). As many readers may already be aware, that was no longer the plan. For those who aren't Facebook or real life friends, let me fill you in on the last few weeks. Apologies in advanced for the mega-long post.

I had a blog post started for 35 weeks. Mostly a familiar update. Uncomfortable but managing. Visit with the specialist again showed the babies looking good. My swelling and blood pressure were the main causes of concern. Spencer was cleared to walked in his boot without a walker. Physical therapy was making a real difference in my mobility and comfort. Final countdown was underway for the kids to arrive. Less than 2 weeks, single digits. Well, let's just say that post never got finished because life just doesn't like to go as planned.

Sunday, July 9- I started to get a contraction every hour or so.  Not my first ones, but these were different that what I'd had before.  They would last a few minutes, but only happened about once an hour or so and didn't progress.  I didn't actually feel them in my tummy; it was more my back would hurt and when I'd realize that I'd poke at my tummy to feel how tight it was.  I drank more water and spent most of the afternoon lounging and resting.  My blood pressure was on the high side still, but not high enough to meet the doctor's orders to go straight to the hospital.  I decided I have an appointment on Monday, I could wait until then since my symptoms didn't quite fit the concerned criteria.

35 weeks and 5 days

Monday, I went to physical therapy in the morning.  I actually felt rather good in most of my usual problem areas; it was just my back bothering me from the contractions.  The therapist worked on my back, helping to work out some of the knots in my lower back.  I left feeling good, but off.  I went home and put in an hour of work to finish up a project I'd been working on before leaving for my next doctor's appointment with Spencer.  We had to wait for quite a while to see the doctor, as per usual.  By the time we got back to the exam room, my blood pressure had gone up quite a bit.  The specialist kept telling me that if it got up to 160 for the upper number, I needed to go to labor and delivery.  My blood pressure at the beginning of the appointment had spiked to 161/something.  We continued the appointment and saw the kiddos on the ultrasound. After the appointment, the nurse took my blood pressure and it'd barely gone down.  The doctor wanted me to go to labor and delivery for observation and told me not to eat or drink anything until further notice.

What a pair we make right now-
one with dangerously high blood pressure and
one with a bum foot

Spencer and I walked across the hospital to labor and delivery.  This was Spencer's first time there (my third for those counting). We got to go in the normal way instead of through the ER like I'd been the last two times. I checked in with the lady at the desk who filled out a bunch of paperwork with us. I was shown back to a room and told to change and leave a urine sample.  I was hooked up to the heart monitor to watch the babies heart rates and measure for contractions.  The doctor had also ordered several blood tests in addition to the urine test.  Once those results came back, we'd have more of an idea of what the next step would be.  After about an hour or so, we were told that my platelet count was low, my creatinine ratio was high, and that the babies would be coming that day due to pre-eclampsia.  I was admitted to the hospital and the nurse started prepping me for the c-section. It was at this time that I felt like I was on the first big hill of a roller coaster- scared to death of the drop and what's to come but no way to get off.  Mom, Dad, Spencer and I hung out for a few hours until the doctor finished her day at the office; then, she came over and delivered the babies.

Our happy little family

The c-section was a very weird experience; I was very glad Spencer was there to keep me calm. It was so cold in the operating room and so many people buzzing around doing their things.  I got the epidural and laid down. Spencer came in and sat near my head while the nurses installed the drape to keep us from viewing all of the gruesomeness of surgery.  The doctor came in and the procedure started. Everything happened so fast. All of a sudden, we could hear Owen crying, then a few minutes later, Elizabeth came out crying.  Each baby had their own team of doctor and nurses who took them and checked them out.  Owen was 5 pounds, 3 ounces; Elizabeth surprised everyone by edging him out at 5 pounds, 4 ounces.  They wrapped up the kids and handed them to Spencer to hold.  We both got to see them and take a picture while my procedure finished up.  Then it was off to the labor and delivery room to recover.  We got to do skin to skin with the kids for about an hour.  We tried to breastfeed for a little while, which both seemed to do ok with me fumbling around trying to figure out what I was doing.  After skin to skin time, the nurses cleaned up the babies some more and then focused on my recovery, which took a little longer because I'd been on baby aspirin, which caused more bleeding than normal with a c-section delivery.  Spencer got more pictures of the kids and sent them out to friends and family.  His mom drove down after work and was the first of the family to see the kids.  We thought that they'd need to go to the NICU immediately, so we'd been telling family that there wasn't too much point in stopping by that night.  Turns out our kids our fighters and avoided the NICU altogether.

More to come later on our recovery and homecoming.

Meet Owen and Elizabeth

33 and 34 weeks

33 weeks (written last week, just never posted)

I started a draft for this post last week and forgot all about it.  Opening it up just now reminded me of how different our lives were just a week ago.  In order to avoid being vague and cryptic, I'll jump right in.  Wednesday, June 21st, Spencer was t-boned in a car accident.  I'm not going to go into too many details online just in case the insurance wants to use it against us later.  He is back home finally, starting the long road to recovery.

Before the accident happened, I'd had a physical therapy appointment that morning. The therapist "massaged" certain areas, helping to expel some knots and engage my muscles. I got some homework to work on to stretch things out at home.  Each visit helps a lot; I'm still sore, but it's more manageable.  I worked from home after physical therapy before we had our appointment with the OB.  I met Spencer there because he'd gone to work and had another appointment just before mine.

We got to wait for about 2 hours for our appointment this time; it's a bad sign when they bring out snacks for everyone in the waiting room.  I started to feel crummy while we were waiting, so I had a few snacks thinking it was just low blood sugar.  Once we were called back to see the doctor, the nurse got my vitals.  My blood pressure was kind of high at this point and my feet were swollen (all though that is a new normal).  The doctor talked with us about signs to keep an eye on and mentioned that it may be a good idea to work from home instead of going into work.  She did the sono to check for heartbeats.  Afterwards, she took my blood pressure again to see if it was still elevated.  If it had been, I was going to be sent to labor and delivery to get checked out.  Luckily, it went back down closer to my normal.  We go back again in two weeks for what may be our last appointment with that doctor before the babies come. Craziness!


34 weeks

This was probably the first week of the whole pregnancy that I haven't checked my app to see what the babies are supposed to be up to in there at 34 weeks.  I've just been too busy.  Like I said above, Spencer was in an accident a week and a half ago.  He broke his foot and has severe bruising and contusions that limit his mobility.  He's been home from the hospital for less than a week now, but improving a little bit every day.  In the meantime, I'm doing my best to help him out as I can while still taking it easy.

My boss has allowed me to work from home, for which I'm super grateful. I have about 4 appointments a week now, so working from home prevents me from needing to use so much sick leave and from driving by myself 20 miles to work along a fairly undeveloped highway twice a day.  I can put my feet up so they swell less while still getting some work done.  The doctors are very happy for this too; I think bed rest would have been in my future if I wasn't allowed to stay home more.

I had some more physical therapy this week. It has been helping a bunch but I'm still just super sore all of the time.  Sleeping has been much harder as of late because the hips always hurt. I just can't find a good position.  This weekend, Elizabeth has decided that my left hip bone is a good place to kick or something; probably not helping the hip pain I already have.

I saw the specialist a few days ago too.  Mom came with me this time since Spencer can't get around very well right now.  We had the doctor do a video of the ultrasound so Spencer could watch later.  The babies are doing really well. Owen was in a bad spot so it was hard to get accurate measurements.  The doctor estimated 5 lbs 2 oz, but thinks that's an underestimate.  Elizabeth was her usually squirmy self, weighing in at 4 lb 12 oz.  They are both doing great according to all the doctor's tests.  The only concern the doctor has is me right now.

My blood pressure being high and my swelling are signs of gestational hypertension or even pre-eclampsia.  I went to Labor and Delivery to get checked out the night of the accident, just to make sure everything was ok after what I'd witnessed. I also went about a week later when my blood pressure spiked.  An hour long non-stress test later, and I was sent home.  I feel bad about going with false alarms, but we promised the doctor I'd be better safe than sorry about this.  Anyways, when the specialist heard about all of this, she ordered a 24-hour urine test and some blood work to see what's up with me.  I did that all of Thursday (thank goodness I could work from home) and dropped off everything Friday morning. I am still waiting for the results, hoping for everything to come back normal, or at least just hypertension, and not pre-eclampsia.  I'm trying to keep these kids in as long as I can to give Spencer more time to recover.

So now, we wait. And try to take it easy while still getting things ready for the babies to come.  It's been hard for me to ask for help or even accept help. Partly because I'm still overwhelmed and not sure where to start on certain things.  Partly because I feel like a lazy bum asking someone to vacuum or clean up after us while I sit on the couch doing nothing.  It's going to be a learning experience.

Bump! or more like watermelon!

Week 32 - one month to go!

Man this one is super late (and long apparently), but it's because we've been super busy with appointments, friends and family. 

We saw the specialist last week for a growth scan and fetal assessment. They both got 10/10 on all their tests (not sure exactly what they were testing). Owen is weighing just over 4 pounds and Elizabeth was just shy of 4 pounds. So both are doing amazing! We did the non-stress test thing with heart monitors hooked up to my tummy for 20 minutes or so. Owen was hard to find his heart beat consistently (not in a bad way, they were both uncooperative toots that day), but everything looked good according to the doctor. At the rate they are growing, they will be about 6.5 pounds each next month when they are due (that'll be 13 pounds of baby 😨).

I started physical therapy last week to try to help ease some of my pelvic pain. My right hip where it meets the backbone is loose, which means it's always out of place and aches. I also have symphysis pubis dysfunction, which means my pubic bone shifts out of place and aches.  The therapist stretched me in different ways to find out what triggers my pain, then "massaged" some of my muscles and ligaments. It was more like she found a ton of knots and pushed into them as hard as she could. It hurt but felt good too. I was so sore afterwards, but it's starting to feel better. I go back a few times a week for the same treatment until the babies come.  In between visits, I'm supposed to wear my support band to help keep everything in place and to help make the therapist's adjustments more effective.

I got to hang out with my sister for the first time in over a month since she moved away. We were going to do a small maternity photo shoot, but I wasn't feeling well (feet were super swollen) so decided to postpone it.  If we get around to it, cool. But it's not as important to me as newborn photos will be. Speaking of, if anyone has recommendations for an affordable photographer, please pass along the info.

Last weekend, a group of my mom's friends threw us a baby shower. These are ladies I've known probably the majority of my life now; mom plays bunco with them every month or so still. They prepared some great brunch finger foods, had adorable decorations, and gave Spencer and I a chance to celebrate with many of our friends and family. It was a wonderful event and I'm so grateful for all of time we've spent with friends and family as well as the gifts we received (not only at this shower but the others we've had as well).

O for Owen and E for Elizabeth

I think we finally have most of the very basics we'd need for the kids (car seats, stroller, place to sleep, some clothes and diapers/wipes). We also have more of the nice-to-have items and will get more with time. I haven't converted our guestroom/office into a nursery yet because I think it's more useful as a guest room for now.  It means less storage for what we have so far, but allowed us to host some friends for the weekend last week and next. We are slowly getting organized, sorting through things and finding new homes for most of our stuff.  Mom helped us finalize a theme a few weeks ago (animals). My sister has helped provide some ideas for decorating the nursery, which has helped spur my creative juices too. As much as I was putting it off before, now that I have more of a plan, I'm excited to work on getting it more together. I suppose nesting mode is starting to kick in. Spencer already created some very cute letters for each kid.  Now to get busy!  Less than one month to go...

Bump Pic at 32 week and 6 days.
I have fewer and fewer clothes that fit now haha

Week 31

Man, the end of the week appointments do not help my procrastination at all.  Sorry for the later post.

We have hit 31 weeks now. Seems hard to believe we've come this far, even though there's still a ways to go. I feel huge (doctor said I measure 38 weeks) even if I don't look it (as most people tell me). I can no longer squat down on the ground and get back up again. I actually got stuck the other day without a good way of pulling myself up, so Spencer had to help me. It was both funny and sad. I've had random contractions off and on, but nothing the doctors are worried about. And my biggest other complaint is the amount of swelling in my feet. I try to prop them up more and stay off of them, but it's hard. I'm trying out compression socks to see if they can help any. On the plus side, that pillow I broke down and bought makes a big difference, even though I still get up a lot in the middle of the night and toss and turn a bunch still.

We had two more baby showers this week. My office put together a great and generous party for the babies (and me and Spencer). We played the clothes pin game where you can't say the word baby or you lose a pin. I did rather well considering how many cards I read out loud. Lots of paraphrasing, but I still lost. We got several books to start the kiddos library and tons of really cute onesies and other baby supplies. One coworker's husband helped build an adorable diaper cake topped with two bears. It's very cute and I couldn't resist posting a picture.

Some of Spencer's family threw us a shower earlier today. It was great getting to see everyone and catching up since our last get together at Christmas. Our kiddos are going to be some of the best dressed thanks to many precious little outfits. I hope we can find an excuse to all get together again after babies come but before Christmas.

Our last doctor visit wasn't extremely eventful. First appointment of the day meant we didn't have to wait long, which was nice. I've hit the 160 pounds mark, which the doctor said is great progress. I still wish it was a bit more, but I'm working on it. She said the babies are doing great; most twins start to see a few complications around this time, but kiddos as doing wonderfully.  Since we had already decided to do a csection, I asked if we could schedule a day so we have an end date in mind. Babies could still come early, but they should not stay in past July 19th now. It was kind of weird getting to pick their birthday out. Now it seems so much more real; our family will double in size in five and a half weeks! It feels so distant but also so soon, especially given the amount of organizing we still need to do for the house.

We go back for another growth scan middle of next week. And I start physical therapy to try to help my pelvis get back into place as best it can given the circumstances. Hopefully next week's post will be back to the middle of the week like normal.  Here's a bump pic (since I haven't posted one in a while)

Week 30 - Guest post ;)

Good evening friends and followers.  This is Spencer and I am filling in (hopefully not too terribly) for your usual writer, the always amazing Stacey.  Things have been going pretty well since the last time we posted.  I do not have Stacey's talent for all details (mainly because I am not the one who is pregnant) but I will try to give the good pieces of information that I know.  Friday is a bit hazy, so I'm going to skip that one for know.

Saturday was quite busy. We went shopping for some new maternity clothes for Stacey.  Now normally I am not a fan of shopping but my wife knows me well and bribed me with lunch.  She was able to find a few things so it was a worthwhile trip.  It wasn't very long but with the kiddos kicking like crazy, she has been getting worn out quicker than usual.  On the bright side though, Stacey has discovered that swimming is a great help for easing some of her aches and pains, and as we learned it can also help nutrients get to each kiddo.  

We made good use of our UNT Rec Center passes.  I'll give Stacey credit; she actually was able to get in the pool in under 15 min. this time!  I keep telling her that if she just got in all at once she wouldn't be as cold, but she is stubborn.  We can only hope the kids take after me...less stubborn but right more often.  :)  Well after a good half hour in the pool, we did a second round of shopping.  We went to Hobby Lobby to try and get ideas for decorating the kiddos nursery.  While we didn't find a lot, I did get a good idea for a project I want to do for the kiddos.  It will we require all of my very limited artistic skills but I really want to try it.  I can't share too much now, but if it works I will share a picture here.  Side note:  Stacey bought me the most amazing early birthday present!  It's nerdy and totally me!

Sunday was busy but a lot of fun for us both.  It started as most Sundays do with us asking each other what we want to do and complaining that neither of us has any ideas.  Knowing that Stacey has limited time to go out and do stuff, I suggested seeing the new Pirates movie. We both enjoyed it, even though Owen and Elizabeth were practicing karate kicks throughout the previews.  They have been moving and wiggling a ton recently, which I think is great cause I get to feel them, but I know it wears on Stacey.  Later that day we were able to attend the baptism our some of our best friends' daughter.  It was awesome and she was ADORABLE!!  Afterwards, we went back to their house and discovered a new trick to get the babies to kick...cold hands.  Apparently they love the sensation and start moving like crazy when they feel them.

Monday was another busy as we went on a shopping /idea gathering trip with Stacey's mom.  I'm sure Stacey will follow this place holder blog up with one with more details but suffice it to say we made no purchases but did narrow the focus on what we want for the nursery.  I love my wife dearly but I have had to start pushing her a little more when it comes to making decisions.  She likes to overthink everything until she doesn't have to make one haha.   Now I will say that I am picking up the slack where I can, and making what decisions I can, but I am happy she is on board with collaborating on decision making.

Stacey was having some back pain the past few days so she finally caved on my wonderful advice and purchased a pregnancy pillow.  She was skeptical at first but considering she passed out about 15 minutes after trying it out I am thinking it was a great purchase.  We actually found out today at the doctor's appointment that she was experiencing back contractions (so that's my new learned thing of the day).  Luckily, they only happened twice and sporadically, so nothing too worrisome. But it's at that point where, in addition to checking on the kiddos health, they will start checking their living space as well to make a decision on when to go get them.  I have considered starting a Baby Pool as a way to raise some extra money haha.  

Well, if you stuck with me this long, you are either a glutton for punishment, or I wrote this post decently enough.  Let's get to the good part, today's doctor visit!  It went WONDERFUL!  Both kiddos are head down and heads together.  Stacey thinks that they are already plotting; and considering they are a mix of Stacey and myself, that probably is what's happening.  They were positioned well enough for the doctor to get some great measurements.    Owen is still doing great and is at 3 pounds 5 ounces.  He has started to slow his growth which the doctor says is normal for twins in the 28th-30th weeks.  I think the best news of the day goes to our little girl though.  She has done quite a bit of growing in the past few weeks and is now......

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3 pounds and 2 ounces!!!!  She is only 3 ounces behind her brother and also doing wonderful!  It was very exciting and emotional seeing her in the 22nd percentile after as small as she was; but she is just taking her own time to get big.  

What happens next is still up in the air; we know they have at least have 2 more weeks for sure in the oven, and hopefully another 6 after that.  Every week from here on out just makes them healthier and reduces chances they'll spend a lot of time in the NICU.   This has been such a roller coaster of a journey and we could not have done it without the support of all of you.  Thank you for being with us and I can't wait to share the next great news with you soon.

29 weeks - looking good

I'd thought that not too much had happened in the last week, so I hadn't felt a rush to post this week. Looking back, I guess there has been a bit more than I remembered right off.

We had our first baby shower last week at Spencer's office. We got what his coworker likes to call the baby limo (the stroller for those who couldn't guess that), as well as a bunch of diapers and wipes (should last us a couple of days, ha ha sigh). The babies have some cute socks, a handmade fleece blanket each, and UNT onesies. It was a nice party with lots of yummy treats. We even took our first bit of nursery decor from the decorations they'd made; it's a burlap type banner that says Welcome to the Wolfpack. All in all, a wonderful shower. Thanks UNT Admissions :)

I suppose I should throw in the fact that I turned 30 last week as one of our events. I don't feel old or anything; to me 30 is just another number. Because of the pregnancy we did some rather low key celebrations, which was perfect. Got to hang out with my favorite people, which is all I really wanted.

We had another appointment with the OB on Tuesday afternoon. I'm switching these to morning appointments from now on. We got to our 3:30 appointment early and then waited until after 4:30 to be called back for the nurse. I got my whopping cough vaccine and Rh shot before we got to wait for another 15 minutes or so to see the doctor. She did a scan for heartbeats. Both babies were head down, with Elizabeth's head on my right side and Owen in the middle. Their feet are both under my left ribcage area. No measurements on size, but heartbeats looked good. Fairly uneventful appointment after that. We go see her again in 2 weeks. So we now see a doctor a week, just alternating which doctor each week.

I swear I had a growth spurt overnight the other night. I'm now up about 21 pounds since the beginning of the pregnancy. My belly seems even bigger and my maternity clothes are starting to get a tad too small in some cases. Gonna have to get bigger shirts or get the sewing machine out and transform some of Spencer's shirts into maternity shirts. Sleeping has gotten harder because I can't find a comfortable way to sleep. The babies won't stop kicking and squirming, especially while I'm at work. I can tell my pelvis isn't happy with the amount of stretching it's being asked to do; everything is sore in that region. There's alot to complain about but really I'm doing ok and getting used to my new normal. I like feeling the kids kick and know that I'm doing the best I can for them right now. Still can't believe we have another 7-9 weeks to go before we get to meet them.

28 Weeks - Third Trimester starts

We had another growth scan earlier this week to see how the turkeys are doing.  Got some of the best news we'd heard in a month or so.  Elizabeth is back up above the 10th percentile; she's in the 15th percentile now!  The doctor was very impressed and released us back to every other week scans.  Here's a screenshot of the message our regular OB sent the next day after she got our report.  It made me smile.

Owen

Owen was back in his head down position during the scan so it was hard to get his measurements.  He's starting to practice breathing on his own.  His head measured above the 99th percentile in the scan, so I'm really glad right now we're opting for the c-section.  The doctor said that could even out with the rest of his body before he comes, but overall, he's still a big baby.  He's 2 pounds 11 ounces right now and measuring about a week ahead size-wise.

Elizabeth, who graced us
with a rare glimpse of her profile

Elizabeth's face using the 3D feature

In the middle of the doctor measuring Owen, she noticed that Elizabeth was showing her profile. Every scan we've had there, it seems that Elizabeth is facing my back and we never get any shots of her face.  So the doctor stopped measuring Owen and switched to snapping a few pictures of her profile and even used the 3D imaging to look at her. I think that image is a tad weird, but it's the best we got at the time.  Elizabeth is transverse with her head under my left ribs.  She was hiccuping during the scan and wiggling the whole time.  There were times I could see my belly shaking as she danced and performed for the doctor.  She's only a few days behind her gestational age, weighing in 3 ounces above 2 pounds.  She's only about half a pound behind her brother now.

Overall, we are super excited that she's doing better.  I'd upped my protein and water intake and will continue to do so in the hopes she will start gaining even more.  I'm resting more and more as simply walking and standing can be exhausting.  My hands and feet like to swell up some if I do too much.  I got a three week pass to the Rec Center on campus to use the pool to float for a little bit a few times a week.  That was nice the first day and I can't wait to go back again.  I feel the babies move much more now, especially after ice cream.  I also had what the doctor says was my first contraction last weekend.  After sitting down to dinner, I felt it and got worried.  I wasn't sure exactly what I'd felt, but thought I'd drink a glass of water and lay down for a while (I remembered reading that somewhere).  I didn't feel any more after that, so decided just to wait until the doctor's appointment in a day or two and report it then.  I'm hoping that continuing to rest and not overdo it will prevent it from happening again.

Well until next week...