Inching closer toward our dream

Well, tomorrow I will be 22 weeks preggo with these little miracles! We had a great appointment yesterday. When I say great - I mean they are healthy, their fluid levels are good and they are growing at a normal rate. Baby A and C are both 1 pound, 2 ounces. Baby B is a little behind at 14 ounces. She has always been a little slower to grow though and the doctors say its normal. They are less concerned with the twin to twin transfusion at this point which is a relief. We are still at risk for it throughout the pregnancy but as of now we don't have it. They think the fluid imbalance may be more of a placental share issue, where one twin has more of the placenta than the other. It can mimic TTTS but its not as severe, although it does have its risks as well. The doctor even went so far yesterday as to say we may have been "prematurely diagnosed" with TTTS. As frustrating as this is because of how scared we were and as angry as I am that we were told to basically kill one or more of our babies when they were not even that sick, I am relieved to hear it was a mistake and that right now, they are fine. I even get to go two weeks until my next appointment instead of one. Yay!

I have been struggling with these migraines for about 6 weeks now. I get the headaches every day and every afternoon, I am pretty much useless for awhile, sometimes the rest of the day depending on how bad it is. I cant look at the TV, computer, read a book, nothing until it passes. Its very frustrating. A solution has been offered though and so hopefully by my next update they will no longer be an issue. The heat has not been helping and I know I complain about it a lot. I never really cared about the heat before. But when you are stuck inside all day and cant go anywhere, it would be nice to be able to get some fresh air in the back yard, its just not a possibility for me at this point. I am praying for cooler weather soon.

In terms of my restrictions on what I can and cant do, the doctors still want me to take it easy. So far so good, lets not mess anything up by overdoing it. I try to keep my feet up most of the day and I really need to start getting in the pool and doing some leg exercises at night. My knees are really sore to bend and my feet feel like I have been at Disneyland all day. I think my muscles are just stiff. My hands still hurt but its tolerable. Its all tolerable actually except the headaches. All in all I would say I am doing very well considering I have three new lives growing inside me! Every once in a while I get out of the house for short periods of time and that helps.

We have a lot of exciting events coming up! This weekend I am having some maternity photos taken. I am looking forward to capturing some decent pics of myself and Tommy, and my belly. I am getting my hair done and am also excited just to feel a little prettier than recently. It will be nice to be able to show off my stomach and not have to be self conscious about it (for once). :-). Then, the next weekend is my baby shower. I don't have to go into how excited I am for that because I already did. The closer we get, the more excited I become. I cant wait to see everyone!

We will be announcing the names in the next few days so stay tuned. I will also try to add some of the maternity pics if possible. I am not sure how long those take. Tommy and I have dreamed of this moment right now our whole lives, long before we ever knew each other. Our dream came true when we met each other and now the rest of our dreams are falling into place. Our very own family. Every week we get closer and despite the aches and pains and worry that comes along with pregnancy, I cant even describe how happy I am.

PS. The babies are moving all the time now and I am loving it!

Somebody Kicked Me!

I can't believe I am 20 weeks pregnant! I really feel like getting to this point has been another milestone for me. I remember when all I could think about was making to 12 weeks and here I am at 20. I am more than half way there. There is still a ways to go and we still are not out of the woods yet in terms of TTTS, but I am optimistic.

The coolest thing happened this past week. I felt the babies move for the first time. I woke up at the usual 2am a few nights ago and I felt this sudden movement in the upper part of my belly. I knew it was them right away. Then I was so excited I could not go back to sleep for two hours. Since then I have been feeling them a lot more. Its the most amazing feeling. I cant even describe to you the happiness it brings me. The kicks are still not strong enough for Tommy to feel but I know it is only a matter of time and I cant wait for him to feel them too.

I had my first experience with acupuncture today and so far so good. It was not that bad and it did not hurt at all. Once you get past the mental aspect of having all those needles sticking out of you, your fine. So far I have not had a headache today which is the first day in a few weeks. I have not even taken one Tylenol. I really hopes it lasts and this helps. Its pretty expensive and we cant really afford for me to go on a regular basis so I pray this works for awhile. I guess the babies can feel acupuncture too because the whole time I was laying there they were moving around like crazy. This lady said they can feel it but I didn't really believe her and then BAM, they were kicking!

Everybody, and I mean everybody including this lady today and all my doctors say I need to drink a lot more water and increase my protein intake and that might help with the carpel tunnel and headaches. Its like, I drink water ALL DAY long, probably more than a gallon a day and I drink 3 protein shakes a day PLUS my regular three meals. I don't think its possible for me to drink anymore than already am without exploding. I mean honestly people, I am drinking water to the point where by the time I go to bed at night, one more drop and I would be sick. I think these three babies are just taking most of it from me, but that's why I am doing this right. Its all for them!

My baby shower is coming up in a few weeks and I am super excited. My good friend Christie, did an awesome job on the invitations, they are so cute and so me and they even kind of go with the title of this blog. I cant wait to see everyone and celebrate the babies! I don't get out much these days as the doctors have me resting and feet up as much as possible. Sometimes the days drag on, but then when I hit milestones like 20 weeks, it makes it all worth it. My plan is to keep working from home for now and try to make it as long as I possibly can, so I have more time with the babies after their born. I think I want to try and make it through September if things keep going well, but honestly it just all depends on these babies. Every time I think I have it planned out they change the plan :-)

Tommy and I will be attending our first baby care class at the hospital Monday night. I need to get that out the way while I can still move around a little. Then soon after is the first aid/CPR class, although its in September and I am not sure if I will still be able to get around at that point. We will play it by ear. The closer we get the more exciting this is. I can't wait to get back to working on the nursery. Tommy got the chandelier up and he is getting the chest this weekend from IKEA. That is something we decided not to spend a ton of money on.

Tommy has been out of town so much lately I think he may be more tired than me. It sure is hard on me when hes gone but I know it is hard on him too.There are some days he is gone and I don't think I will be able to get myself off the couch. I kind of sink in and then my hands hurt so bad I cannot put any pressure on them to get myself up. Its kind of funny actually.

I guess that's all for now. Babies are moving, we hit 20 weeks, shower is coming up, all is good for another week or so. I love saying that!

19 Weeks

Its been another great week for us. Tuesday we had another successful doctors appointment, meaning the fluid levels on all babies are looking good for now. I really like the doctor I have seen the last two times we have been in. He seems to have a much better grip on what is happening with me and the babies. He reminded me again that things could change any week, and he will need my full attention when/if that happens but for now we need to envision ourselves having three healthy babies at 36 weeks...gosh I hope I can make it that long. Every week I go through an emotional cycle of worry and stress the day before the appointment to cloud 9 the next few days after the appointment and then slowly back to the worry by the end of the week. What a roller coaster we are on!

We actually bought the bedding this week for the nursery. Pink, Blue and Chocolate Brown are the colors, with stars, strips and polka dots. Its the first real fun decorative thing we have purchased and I feel like I can finally start to see in my head what the nursery will look like. Up until this point, I have been really nervous about buying anything because of all the what ifs. But there is no telling what could happen at any point in the pregnancy and I cant just sit here and do nothing because we are high risk. So, I am moving forward.

I got the invitation for my baby shower the other day. It is the cutest ever! With a french theme, just like this blog. My friends know me too well. They did such a great job on the invitations and now I am really getting excited. All this stuff, I once upon a time wondered if I would ever have the chance to experience and know I am. It fills my heart with happiness. Despite all the aches and pains and worry that come with pregnancy, it is something I have always wanted to experience and am so grateful.

In addition to this carpel tunnel I have and the stuffy nose, I am getting migraines every day, some are worse than others and nothing seems to help. So, next week I am going to my first acupuncture appointment. This woman comes recommended from my doctors office and specializes in pregnancy and reproductive health. I am very nervous as this is new for me but excited also to finally see what this is all about and hopefully find some natural relief to my headaches. I measured my belly yesterday as well and it is 42.5 inches or 3.5 feet. So funny to think about.

19 weeks means I am more than half way to the finish line, and every week I get closer and closer to meeting my babies. I cant wait to hold them in my arms. A couple more weeks and maybe we will share the names with you. Its been so hard holding that back also but given what we have been going through, we want to wait a little longer!

Cheers to another great week!

The Joys of Pregnancy

I am so excited that I hit the 18 week mark today! I cannot believe it hardly. I remember clearly at 9 weeks, just wanting to make it to 12 and then to 15 and now I am at 18 weeks! I still have a long way to go and as you know we still have some hurdles to get through but today I want to write about all the normal, little things that go along with being pregnant. These things that I may only get to experience once in my life time and some I only want to experience once.

I think today is the first day in two weeks I have put on makeup. I don't see the point anymore now that I am working from home. The farthest I normally go from the door of my house is outside to the pool or down the street for the mail. Even when I have a doctor's appointment I don't put on make up anymore. I figure I usually cry, whether they are happy tears or sad tears and then the makeup is all over my face and I look even worse. But today I did put some on and it was kind of nice actually. Made me feel like not such a blob on the couch which is how I feels sometimes.

Speaking of make up and such, I thought pregnant women were supposed to have this clear, glowing skin....not me. I look like I am 13 again, my face is breaking out so bad, and I'm wearing less makeup so not sure what the problem is there. My other issue now is my fingers and my hands. They don't look swollen but they are super sore and stiff. I guess you can get carpel tunnel when pregnant and then when you have the babies, it just goes away. Weird! Anyway, I am wearing a wrist brace at night to keep my hand from bending in weird directions. Its seems to be helping a little. Its pretty funny watching me trying to get up from laying in bed or on the couch. I cant put the weight on my hands so its quite the struggle. Tommy is now opening everything for me, including water bottles. I cant twist the caps off. On a side note, my feet seem to be OK for the moment, I don't use them that much though.

I love watching my belly get bigger. It the only time I will be excited about gaining weight! The bigger I am, the healthier the babies are. I wish we could do more baby shopping but I am just not ready to yet with everything else going on. I am really excited to get back to working on the nursery though. The last appointment, the babies weighed 7-8 oz which is right where they should be. I guess they are as big as a bell pepper! I cant feel them yet, but should be any time now. They are so active every ultrasound though, its amazing to me!