Today's Appointment

I saw my doctor today. There hasn't been any cervical change. Still 1 cm dilated and I am going between 50 and 75% effaced. They strapped the heart and contraction monitors to me for about 20 minutes and the heartrates and movement of the babies were fine and there were no contractions. She did another fetal fibronectin test and unfortunately it came back positive again. We assumed it probably would but it would have been nice if it didn't! There is only a 60 percent chance that it means I will go into labor in the next 10 days. (40% chance of false positive). The doctor told me strict bed rest! I have been feeling hot and nauseous throughout the past few days and she thinks its low blood sugar. She wants me to try to get more food in me! I lost a pound this week and a pound last week, but nothing to worry about. I tend to not gain for several weeks and then gain a bunch all at once. On the way home, Adam and I swung by HEB. He went and pulled up a scooter to the car so I could shop. (Not his idea, mine - he was slightly mortified). I had a blast with it, but wished it went a little faster! We stocked up on Ensure shakes, protein bars, hard candy, and Tums. I felt like I was about 50 years older than I am! It was funny though. :) I now have appointments every Tuesday and Friday so I will update then!

Life on Bed Rest

This is definitely an adjustment! I usually barely sit down during the day and here I am forced to lay around. I am just doing all I can to keep my mind occupied. I have finished all my Christmas shopping online for our extended family. I figure there won't be time for that after the babies get here! I am planning out Harrison's future room upstairs. I have had all kinds of projects going to keep sane!

Harrison and I enjoy time in the morning together cuddling, watching cartoons, and reading. Then he plays with Mee Mee til naptime, and Adam is usually home around the time he wakes up and I get more cuddle time in with Harrison. We took the front off of his convertible crib and put up a mesh rail so he is officially in a toddler bed! This way he can get in and out of his bed. He needs a little assistance from me, but I don't have to really lift him. He seems to be doing great with it. I ordered a booster seat so we can ship the high chair to the basement for awhile. He is such a big boy! The first few mornings that I was back home, he woke up and said "Mommy home, mommy not in the hospital, mommy better". It feels so good to be back home!

I will not lie though, I am quite uncomfortable! Henry is so low, about 2 inches from coming out! So I definitely am struggling with the feeling of pressure. I go to the bathroom all day long, all night long. The reflux and heartburn is still nasty. And it just hurts. Laying down and turning from my left to my right side hurts. Getting up hurts. But I continue to hope that I can keep this up for another 3 or 4 weeks at least so they can continue to grow. I have a dr's appointment tomorrow with my regular doctor. She will do an exam and tell me if my dilation and effacement has changed and also a sonogram. Unless its changed drastically, I don't think she would admit me to the hospital again unless I started having crazy contractions. Friday is my appointment with my other doctor (perinatologist is the appropriate name for him I now know!). His ultrasound will tell me their weights which is always good to hear! I am hoping to be 4 lbs plus for both babies. They were 3 lbs, 7 oz, and 3 lbs, 13 oz a week ago. I will do my best to post tomorrow after my appointment!

Quick update

This morning, my doctor did an exam and saw no change in dilation, so she let me go home after three nights in the hospital! They monitored my contractions the night before and they were 1 every 10 minutes and this morning the same, but they are just Braxton-Hicks so she wasn't that worried. I was only even feeling 2 or 3 an hour which I have been feeling for months now. So I think my uterus is just continuing to get ready for labor. I could stay like this for many more weeks and that is my hope. Getting the babies to 35 weeks is the goal. If its less than that, they will most definitely spend time in the NICU. I say "goal", but obvioulsy I have no control! I am on modified bed rest now. Everyone wants to know what I am doing with Harrison. Our plan right now is for Adam to bring Harrison to me in bed in the mornings and we will read books and watch cartoons (which we usually do in the morning anyway) and he will bring him his cereal in his little snack cup. Around 10 I expect him to be ready to play and run around. Then Kim will come over and take over until naptime around 2. Then Adam will try to be home everyday by the time he wakes up. We ordered a mesh crib rail for Harrison's crib in hopes to make the transition to a toddler bed. It seems like an abrupt early thing to do, but I think he can handle it and won't mind. I trust that he isn't going to get up in the middle of the night and wander around. We would hear him with the monitor. With him being in a toddler bed, I don't have to lift him in and out of bed, which at this point would be impossible. About a week before the hospital I started to really slow down. Up until then, I was feeling really good! But now that I am back home, I can say I am definitely experiencing some pain and discomfort. Finding a comfortable way to lay in bed is a big challenge. But I am sooooo glad to be home and be back where I belong with Adam and Harrison! Being in the hospital is truly a miserable experience. But its good to know that I could survive it on my own, that Adam could hold the fort down without me, and that Harrison was able to understand what was going on. He was great throughout all of this! My next appointment is Tuesday and I look foward to another good doctor's report!

In the hospital....BOOOOOO!

Monday morning, I woke up with a little extra pressure and a new pain I hadn't felt before. I decided to try to get in to see my doctor a day early. She was out of town so I grabbed an appt with her nurse practitioner. That was probably a very good move. I tested positive on my fetal fibronectin test which says I have a 60 percent chance of going into labor in the next 10 days. However, my cervix was closed (a very good thing) but softening. I was admitted to the hospital around 6pm for observation. After another exam, they decided to move forward with a steroid shot. This is done to finish developing the babies' lungs over the course of two days. Then they put me on magnesium sulfate to hold off labor for at least long enough to give the steroids time to work. Dr. Berry, my perinatololigst or high-risk doc, came to check out the babies on the ultrasound. They are doing fantastic. Charlie is 3 lbs, 7 oz and Henry is 3 lbs, 13 oz. They are somewhere between 31 and 32 weeks along.

Harrison was at his Mee Mee and Pop Pop's and Adam was with me around 8:00 pm the first night when they gave me the mag. It made me have hot flashes, weak, a little dizzy, so we thought it was best for Adam to stay with me that night. I had 6 things hooked up to me. An IV, finger cuff, blood pressure monitor, contraction monitor, and heart monitors for the babies. So getting up to the bathroom required help and that was many times throughout the night! Also the heart monitors were constantly shifting so someone was coming in to mess with the things strapped to my belly every half hour or so! So not much sleep for either of us that night.

We were woken up very early that morning by a woman giving birth next door without an epidural. I got the scoop later that she had woken up in active labor and by the time she got to the hospital she was 5 or 6 cm dilated - which means too later for the epidrual!!! My worst nighmare I think. The screams were just horrific but didn't last long. Not the most pleasant alarm clock!!!!

Adam went to pick up Harrison around 7am. They had breakfast and watched a little Finding Nemo and then come to see me. Harrison didn't know what to think at first. I imagine it was scary seeing me all hooked up. But we have done as much as we can to prepare him for what he was going to see. He told us "Hospital make mommy feel better" and "Mommy Ok". I did my best to let him see me smiling and laughing and I think he is dealing with everything well. It was hard for us because I couldn't even really hold him or give him a good hug because of all the equipment. They went home for awhile and I caught up on my celebrity gossip and actually read 2 whole magazines! They decided to take me off the magnesium and I immediately took advantage of my freedom (no cords!) and took a shower and changed into my own nightie. I threw up quite a bit today. I think it was mostly related to the reflux and not being able to move around which helps digest the food. But the magnesium could have had an effect on that too. So it felt good to get cleaned up and fresh again! Adam and Harrison spent a few hours with me. We read books and watched cartoons and I could actually snuggle with him on the bed. They have made a few trips to the nursery while they are here and he seems to really like seeing the babies. They gave me my second Steroid shot to complete the lung development. The doctor strongly suggested I take an Ambien to get a good night's sleep. So we said our goodbyes and I popped my first Ambien. She was right, it was probably a good idea and I slept well. I missed my boys though of course!

The hope was that this morning my doctor would examine my cervix, find it closed, and let me go home. Unfortunately it was no longer closed, it was dilated 1 cm. She thought I was 75% effaced, but came back later and said 50%. They decided no more mag (thank goodness!) but gave me a drug called Pro Chardia? (Sp?) that is meant to calm my uterus. When she checked me out, I had been having contractions every 5 minutes for 2 hours. They were mild or just the Braxton-Hicks (tightening, no pain), so I didn't really notice! For that reason, she wants to keep me at least another night. She is doing another exam around 5 to see if there has been any progress or if everything has stayed the same. If its the same and the same tomorrow, I think she will send me home. If its progressed and keeps progressing, then they might put me on the mag to delay it some more and those babies could just

Mo' Money

Today I was "lucky" enough to get into the dentist a week early for my root planing and scaling. Wow. I now feel I am MORE than prepared for the pain of childbirth with twins. The hygenist said it looked like it went well and since I am young I don't need to worry about losing any of my teeth! I have to go back in 3 weeks for a checkup and then every few months after that. So there will be lots of maintenance but not a big deal. I will just be going back for checkups and cleanings, no more of the painful stuff most likely!!!

Adam's credenza, hutch, and office chair came today and they look beautiful. The shutters will be installed on Monday. As far as the office goes, all we really need are a couple of chairs and a table for clients, but we aren't rushing on that. Oh and of course his computer and all of that equipment will be here in a few weeks. Once he has that, he will be ready to roll!

Mee Mee came with us to Tumbles class this morning. Harrison ran around like crazy showing her everything. I took him to the 2 - 3 year old class today instead of the 1 - 2 year old class. I think either class is fine, but its probably good for him to have interaction with the older kids and be challenged a bit more.

We met with a financial planner about his college fund and all that good stuff. Mee Mee was going to take care of Harrison while we were at the appointment so I was explaining to him why he was going to Mee Mee's house. I told him we were meeting a man about the money we had saved for him for college. He quickly said "Don't let that man take Harrison's money". I am still cracking up about that. The boy loves his money. I recently got him one of those big ceramic piggy banks from Target (he had been begging me for one) and I think he thought we were taking his piggy bank to the financial planner! He and Adam were putting coins in it the other day and he told Adam that he wanted to fill it up and then get another one! Maybe he will be a saver like I was when I was little.

Eventually (probably by Christmas), Harrison will need to move upstairs to one of those bedrooms. At that point, the babies will need to move out of our room into the nursery where Harrison is. Since they most likely will still be getting night feedings, it doesn't make sense to put the babies upstairs. I have been feeling all kinds of guilt about it because I feel like I am kicking him out and that he will feel alone and scared all the way up there! So Adam and I think he deserves a really awesome room. We would like to give it to him as his Christmas gift. If its the coolest room ever, then maybe he won't feel alone and scared? I attached a picture of the girl version of the bed we want. The boy version has clouds instead of flowers. We are so in love with it that I think there is no turning back now!

Harrison has had a lot of fun the past few days. On Thursday he got to play with Blaine at our house for a little bit and see Hayley and Mee Mee. Friday morning, we had a playdate with Parker at our house. I think they played in every corner of the house! We watched the first part of Finding Nemo in the media room. It was going great (see pictures) but then Harrison started to try to make out with her. Parker let him know that she was NOT that kind of girl and had to hide behind her mommy. Harrison gave up and started running laps around the room. That didn't get Parker's attention so he threw one of his stuffed animals at her face. Thats when we decided it was time to play upstairs! I might have to teach him some etiquette about movie dates! It was fun though. Harrison loves being around Parker. Unfortunately he also loves Mia and calls Parker Mia and Mia Parker! So I will also have to teach him some etiquette about calling girls the right names too! :)

Friday night, we went to Mee Mee and Pop Pop's house. Friday was Blaine's birthday so they played with Blaine's toys and then went to the pizza place. On Saturday morning we grabbed our Starbucks, filled up on breakfast at Rudy's, went to Caleb's birthday party at Extreme Fun (an indoor bouncy house place), and then had swimming lessons. Then this morning, we did breakfast at Starbucks, spent a few hours at the pool, and then lunch at the pizza place. Not a boring moment for Harrison!

I have definitely started to lose more energy. My body is sore. Super congested. But I still think overall I am doing well. I really enjoyed going to the pool this morning! It wasn't too hot and there was a nice breeze. I got in with Harrison. Its so easy to carry him in the water. And I laid out and soaked in the sun. I think we need to try to make a trip there every weekend until the babies come. Harrison loves it and never gets tried of the water either!

2 worry free weeks!

Well not completely worry free, but a lot less stressful! I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. The babies are still both head down (thank goodness - no surgery please!!!) and she said that Henry's head (he is my Twin A, the first one that will come into the world) is super low. Which explains all the pressure I am feeling! I've gained 32 lbs. My belly is measuring the size of someone 38 weeks pregnant with one baby. I have been having the Braxton Hicks still quite regularly. This is normal, especially with twins, but it prompted her to want to give me a fetal fibronectin test. I have never heard of this, so was pleasantly surprised! This awesome test tells you if you are likely to go into labor in the next 2 weeks by detecting a protein that is produced when your body is preparing for labor. Here is the thing though. If you get a negative result like I did, there is a 96 percent chance you won't be going into labor for the next few weeks. Yay for me! However, if you get a positive result, there is only a 60 percent chance of going into labor. And this is where the tough decisions come in. If you get a positive result, your doctor recommends that you go to the hospital on bedrest for a few days and get steroid shots and then bedrest for the remainder of the pregnancy. These shots speed up the development of the lungs. So on one hand, you know that if the babies do come early, their lungs will be developed. On the other hand, you don't want to do these shots unless you really really have to! But hopefully my test in 2 weeks will give me another negative result and I won't have to worry about it. They don't do the test after 34 weeks.

I went to the dentist yesterday because of bleeding gums. The other night I woke up and had to throw up acid. So very gross! Afterwards I was brushing my teeth and noticed that some of the gum between my lower teeth was seperating from the teeth and bleeding. It kinda freaked me out so I looked online the next morning and found out that during pregnancy because of increased blood flow and hormones, over half of all pregnant women get ginigivitis. And this gingivitis can lead to periodontal disease. THIS is serious because it can cause preterm labor not to mention tooth loss! So I made an appointment that day. Also, I hadn't been to the dentist in 4 years! Adam and I are both so lucky to have generally healthy teeth and no history of cavities, so the dentist has never been much of a priority! Sure enough they discover yesterday that I do have periodontal disease. I am so bummed about it. First of all, I don't need anything else increasing my chances of babies coming too soon! AND its a fortune. AND I have to go back and have "scaling and root planing" done. I just hope we can get the majority of the treatment out of the way before the babies get here. My energy level is shockingly high considering the size of my belly. My biggest challenge continues to be the reflux. My current strategy is to not eat after 2 pm and it seems to be working so far. I make sure that I eat a big enough lunch to hold me over til the next day.

Harrison had his 2nd year dr's checkup today. He hated every second of it. The stethoscope, scales, everything freaks him out. But he is healthy, 26 lbs, and 35 inches tall! She still thinks he will be about 5'10" which is Adam's height and he is growing perfectly!

He has had a better attitide about the babies lately. He likes their cribs in his room. He dug in my belly button with his sharp fingernail and told me he was trying to get the babies out. We still have a big challenge ahead, but I am glad he isn't telling me he wants the doctor to keep the babies inside anymore. Our pediatrician told us it would signal a problem if Harrison DIDN'T care when Mommy brought home the babies. She said he probably wouldn't hurt the babies or take it out on them, but that I would get the brunt of it. Harrison has a very sweet and gentle personality so I don't think it will be that bad. She told us to hold off potty training til age 2.5 and we totally agree. He needs to get used to this major change before we start that.

The media room is finished except for maybe a few decorations. We watched Top Gun last night and I think it was one of the best moments of Adam's life. Harrison loves it and calls it the "plane show". He really only likes the parts when they are flying in the planes of course! Office furniture will be delivered next week. After that we are just waiting on Adam's shutters and the railing work to be done on the deck!

Jackpot!

Not too much to report on this blog post except house news! The nursery is now officially complete. All thats left on the deck is the pergola has to be stained, stucco painted, and railing and staircase built. I think I finally found deck furniture at Ballard Designs that I like that doesn't cost a small fortune, but I will have to wait a couple months to buy it! Which probably works out well since I will have small babies and it will be a million degrees outside! The media equipment will be installed Tuesday and Wednesday (I told you on the last post, it wouldn't take Adam long!), and our couch and chaise will be here on Wednesday as well. The study needs new doors, the rest of Adam's furniture, and shutters. The shutters will be the longest wait, probably another month. Our little fountain is finished, except they shipped it without a pump (just our luck). So we might get done before the babies get here, maybe not! I have my hospital bag packed and the babie's car seats are in the back of my car. Still lots of little things to do.

Harrison finished his first "swim-mester" at swim school and starts a new one next week. He got a little blue ribbon and a T-shirt. The girls at swim school love him. Adam had him sitting on the counter while he signed up for the next session and he picked up their phone and said "Hello, Swim School. Bye-bye"...The other day he kept asking for cheese from Adam's taco and he gave him a little bit and he kept asking for more. So I came over with a huge handful and dumped it on his tray and he smiled really big and said "Jackpot!". So funny because we have never heard such a thing! He says his "new" nursery is amazing and perfect. I bought him some little doctor pajamas and he fixed mommy's stubbed toe and has doctored my tummy. He calls himself Dr. Harrison :)

6 pounds of babies!

Henry and Charlie Update: We had an appointment with the specialist today. They are both still head down (yay!). Charlie is kinda squishing Henry at the moment. Henry is 2 lbs, 15 oz and Charlie is 2 lbs, 13 oz. That's give or take 4 oz. I am very happy they remain close in size. I don't want one intimidating the other one!!! I am 29 weeks along. When the babies reach a combined 8 lbs is usually when (as my doctor puts it) the uterus starts to get cranky and preterm labor can start. This should hit at 32 weeks or around June 19. So that's when I really have to start paying attention to how my body is feeling! I am having the Braxton Hicks contractions all the time. These just feel like a tightening, not painful, just slightly uncomfortable. If its preterm labor, I will feel pain and have several in an hour. If I do start showing signs of preterm labor, I will have to go to the hospital. If they decide that it is preterm labor, they will inject me with magnesium sulfate to stop the labor, give the babies steroids to speed up the growth of their organs (most importantly the lungs) and I will probably be stuck in the hospital for 4 or 5 days. Its possible the magnesium sulfate would only delay the onset of labor for a few days. OR I could go home and be pregnant for another month.

People keep asking me "Are you ready? Have you done everything?" I wish! I am probably more prepared than most though, but still not to my satisfaction. I need to finish packing my hospital bag tonight. We have the crib and changing table set up in our room. And this week we should be able to set up their other two cribs and finish decorating the nursery. I am going to put the two cribs in Harrison's room for now because it doesn't hurt to have an extra place for naptime. When the babies hit 4 or 5 months, we will decide if we are ready to move Harrison upstairs to his own room. We bought a little fridge to put by my glider so I can grab a juice or snack while I am feeding the babies. Seems like I will need a third arm to do so, but I am sure I will figure it out! We have been filling the deep freeze up with frozen casseroles, meat, and pizzas to keep us easily fed in the first few months. I bought an air mattress for Adam for the hospital (the last experience with the "couch" was terrible). Kim and Gary moved into their new house this week only 2 miles away so we know we will be able to count on them to help with Harrison in emergencies!I loaded Kim and Gary up with Harrison supplies so he will be taken care of while he stays there. So I am pretty much left with little details at this point, which is good because my energy level is not as high as it was!

House update: Its been a nightmare of an experience overall. What was supposed to be a simple 2 day project has turned into close to a month. As far as Harrison's room, the media room, and study, it looks like the painting should be done today. If so that just leaves us with the carpet installation on Friday, couch delivery on Tuesday and office furniture mid-June. And at some point Adam will schedule the media room equipment to be installed (sooner than later because he is like a little kid on Christmas, he is just dying to get this put in). Harrison's room/the baby's nursery is going to be so cute! I have outdone myself this time I must say :). We put in the picture frame wainscoting in white plus crown molding and painted the walls cloud blue to match his bedding. He already has two paintings of animals riding in hot air balloons (its very vintage looking) and I found some metal hot air balloons to hang on the wall too. I saw them online and told Adam immediately that I would die if we couldn't buy them (little did he know I already bought them). He was very impressed when they came so I made the right call. They will make the room. The composite decking material came in this weekend and they started laying it today. I imagine they will be done this week and all that will be left is the iron work for the railings and staircase, which will take a few weeks.

Harrison is his usual sweet self with an occasional tantrum. Hayley and Logan gave him a sand and water table so we have been playing with that outside in the evenings. He has been having a blast with Henry and Charlie's Curious George monkies. They ride his train, sit in his recliner, and have been dragged all over this house. He is obsessed with a cartoon called Caillou on the Sprout channel. I swear we have seen every Caillou episode 800 times at this point. I hope Kim and Gary have the Sprout channel or there will be problems! He continues to demand foot rubs throughout the day along with wanting me to sing "Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas". But he also usually follows it up with pleassssssse so I comply. I am not looking forward to days and nights away from him at the hospital, even though I know I will have visits. We are always together and I know I will miss him terribly! But at least I know he will be happy and in good hands with Mee Mee and Pop Pop.

This pic is of Harrison with the Georges. He sat them on the stairs and then sat himself in between them so they could hang out together.