Weeks 27-28 Names Reveal!

Fraternal twins at 28 weeks

It has been about two months now that we have had the names picked out but we were telling people we didn't...haha, yeah sorry! It is probably safe to say these will be the two names we use but then again until they are born we could possibly change our minds :) As it stands, our little girl will be Kelsey and our little boy will be Logan. Of course these are both names that Paul came up with around May. We have been tossing around others but these two names have stuck around. I do like them but they just weren't MY first choices! The middle names are ones that I picked out and they are more officially decided. Those will remain a surprise so that we have something to reveal after the birth. Both sides of our families have a special shout out for the middle names so we hope the people involved in those names will be excited when they recognize their significance! So there you have it, probably the one thing since the gender reveal that everyone has been patiently waiting to hear! It is still very weird for me to know what gender the babies are and what their names will be. I very much liked not finding out with Austin and keeping the names secret but I guess it has been fun to be able to have both scenarios!

A doggie blanket for Logan and a Bunny blanket for Kelsey to match their big brothers Ducky blanket

As for me, I just had my first two week checkup. I am now entering the third and final trimester. All is well except my weight once again. The doctor says I am an okay weight but I really should be heavier. I have gained 20 pounds but probably should be 25 or more by now. I have anywhere from 8-10 weeks left to gain 20 more pounds (oh boy). I just cannot imagine being double the size :/. I have been continuing to drink my boost and I have added a protein nut bar everyday. I eat whenever possible but because I am such a healthy eater I don't really pack on the pounds. The babies are right on track for their weights, so maybe it won't be such a big deal in the long run! I have another appointment in two weeks and then I will go in every week until the birth for the non-stress test monitoring. I dont know too much about this but from what I gathered, I will be hooked up to the fetal monitor for 30-60 minutes depending on how the babies cooperation. I also believe they will be checking my dilation during these visits. I am going to wait and post again in 3 weeks after I have had the next appointment, the next ultrasound and the first non-stress test. I should have lots of things to report on during that post!

My 28 weeks belly

In the meantime, I have already started "nesting". I have been assembling and washing baby items (clothes, bedding, swings, chairs) whenever I have had extra time. Sarah (Paul's sister) has given me Clara's (our niece) girl clothes items. I have gone through both her and my boy items picking out the weather appropriate (Austin was a winter baby) newborn and 3 month old items. They are washed and divided ready for the twins arrival. It is not unheard of to deliver twins extremely early so I want to make sure I have everything done by August. I also risk the chance of bed rest later on so that is another reason I want things in place so I don't need to ask anyone to handle those things for me! It will be enough work for Paul if he has to do the shopping and housework. Rest assured as of now, I am doing great and even attended the Bruno Mars concert. My birthday gift from my brother Ryan and his girlfriend LeAnn was a ticket for myself and LeAnn to attend the concert. They were bought before I announced I was pregnant so we just hoped that I would be in good enough condition to go! It was an amazing show and we had seats further back so I was away from the more rambunctious crowd and the louder speakers. I even danced (well more like swayed and wiggled) plus a sober concert proves to be shorter than a drunken one haha!

LeAnn and I on our way to the Bruno Mars concert

Well, its 4th of July week so I am looking forward to some time off work. I have Austin's best buddy Hugh a couple days this week but then I will be relaxing on the beach or at the pool for the remainder. One more holiday with only one child. I just think about how crazy it will be on the beach next summer with 3 kids under 3 1/2!!! Oooooooh man!

Until next time :)

Weeks 25-26 Gestational Diabetes Scare!

Wow, another two weeks! This summer is going to breeze by and by breeze, I mean if it doesn't get ultra hot I will be a happy girl. I am working back in Huron a couple days a week, which has been wonderful. Ellee and Drake adore Austin and vise versa! Austin has been known to cry when Ellee leaves the room, too cute! He has been getting wore out playing with the big kids and going to bed earlier and earlier! Early being 9:00pm since he is usually a night owl and up until 10:30 sometimes later! I am really enjoying the summer work load except that we have not had great weather for the pool. I hope that changes for July when I plan to be bouyant as much as possible.

Last week I had my routine glucose test which I did not pass. The 1 hour test involves drinking a bottle of glucola, which I don't ever seem to have a problem with, in my opinion it's just like orange pop. After one hour of sitting in the lab they draw your blood to test how your body processes the sugar. Well, my levels were higher than normal so I was ordered to take the dreaded 3 hour test. This one is similar but involves fasting for 12 hours prior. When you get to the lab you have a blood draw before the drink, then you drink a higher concentrated glucola than the 1 hour, this one was fruit punch flavored and still not bad. Well, for the next 3 hours you have your blood drawn every hour on the hour. Only crappy parts involve no eating and drinking during the 3 hours and no leaving the lab!!! It was rather boring but I brought many things to make the time pass and it ended up going much faster than I anticipated. When all was said and done, I passed the test and do not have gestational diabetes! I'm thrilled, I was not looking forward to being on a special diet or worrying that the babies could arrive earlier than expected!

I also had a routine Doctor appointment which Austin attended with me and he did great playing on his tablet in the exam room corner! I now see my Doc every two weeks, until we get closer. My weight is great so I am down to only one Boost a day and some extra protein snacks because I get a bit jittery if I don't eat every couple hours. In addition to the routine exam, I also had my 4th ultrasound. Baby girl is once again breech (butt down) and baby boy is transverse (across) the top. So essentially, they make a T formation :/ They are growing wonderfully with her being 2 pounds 3 ounces and him being 2 pounds 1 ounce. My cervix is closed and long which is awesome! No bed rest in my near future. My ultrasound Doctor who is different than my OB, said I was doing so good that he would wait to see me again for the next ultrasound in 5 weeks instead of 4 weeks. The best part was we got to finally have some neat 3D pics of the babies and the girl was the one who cooperated this time!

Our baby girl's face with the 3D ultrasound! What a cutie

My 26 weeks belly, I was taking pictures at my Mommies group 10th Anniversary Party!

Weeks 23-24 Contractions galore!

Twins at 24 weeks

Those two weeks just flew by!  My guess is because we had a holiday weekend to enjoy! We or rather I should say Paul, spent the first part of our holiday weekend finishing up our new front porch. Like all projects, he ended up having to do a little more work than just pulling up the old boards and laying new composite decking. With our new porch, front door and new screen door, I finally have the facade I have been wanting. My red door and red flowers in the pots and window boxes sure did look nice with all my mini flags out for Memorial Day :) That will be it for the projects on our house for now. We have a running list but won't probably do much else to improve things until winter rolls around. We like to enjoy the good months that Ohio offers and use the crappy months for projects!

The rest of the weekend consisted of a BBQ at my parents house with my family including my uncle who was home from the Netherlands. We enjoyed ribs, macaroni salad, baked beans and strawberry pie. We had fantastic weather and great ambiance on my parents deck and their paradise of a backyard. We spent the next day at the pool. Paul's mom has a pool complex near her condo. We often have the pool to ourselves but being opening weekend with great weather it was more packed than normal but not full, I have never seen it full! Paul's sister and her family and my parents joined us for the 85 degree pool day! My pregnancy brain is in full effect. I managed to accidentally leave my bathing suit in the pool bathroom the first time I used it!!! Luckily it was still there when Barb returned to get it....phew!

As for the pregnancy itself, I had my first contractions freak out moment! I had one night where for 3 hours I had loads of rather uncomfortable contractions. I was counting them to see if they exceeded 6 each hour and just when I was really getting worried they stopped completely and I got a good nights sleep. I have been instructed to report the the hospital if I have 6 contractions or more in an hour, for 2 straight hours. At which point they would do their best to stop them and check if I was actually progressing into labor! Please, please, please don't happen again until late August! I wasn't too worried about having these babies super early until now! I would really just like to make it until around August 15th. I think I have forgotten to mention in all these posts that my actual due date is September 21st. I think I found it irrelevant being that I will have these babies two weeks or more early no matter what! I am trying not to think about it but being discharged before my babies is making me want to cry! I hope they are a healthy size so we can all go home together!! Trying to shuffle Austin and babies still at the hospital seems like a total nightmare! (Breathe, relax!)

Now for the picture everyone wants to see, my huge, fast growing belly!

My Belly with Austin at 24 weeks!

My belly with Twins at 24 weeks! WAYYYYYY BIGGER!

My belly with Austin at 37 weeks...ENOUGH SAID, I will be HUGE with the twins!!

Up next is my glucose tolerance test,  Dr. Appointment and fourth ultrasound!

Weeks 21-22 Good Doctor Visits

Well, I am feeling rather plump these days! I know I am still small considering I will probably be double or triple the size that I am now. I am really doing good with weight, averaging about 1 pound a week now. I am up 13 pounds if you count the couple pounds I lost in the beginning. My doctor was thrilled to chart me at a 10 pound gain after my last appointment only being a 2 pound gain. I feel wonderful except for my lingering allergies which mostly consists of a hacking cough and needing to use my inhaler more often. Austin is in the same boat, poor kid has been off and on sneezing and coughing like me.

I have been more active during the day which is causing more exhaustion at night but it makes for a good nights sleep. I just started watching my friends son Hugh an additional day a week and the new baby 2 half days as well. It has been great to have a newborn around to give me my baby fix. Now that I am starting to get anxious to meet our babies, having a seven week old around to cuddle and love is keeping me at bay :)

The babies are off to the races moving at certain parts of the day and sleeping most of it. I have noticed a couple trends of wake and sleep time with them. Luckily they both sleep during the night and I am not awoken by kicks and flips. Speaking of flips, they both have lots of room to move. During our ultrasound they went from both being head down to both being transverse(sideways). They are weighing 1 lb 1oz and 1 lb 2 oz with heartbeats of 146 and 147. (So much for the old wives tale of differing heartbeats for different genders) which they are still confirmed one girl and one boy ;)

Baby boy profile with arm up by face

Baby Girl face frontal, on the left you can see her eyes, nose and mouth

Baby girl profile 

We now have two girls names that are battling it out for ultimate winner but the middle name is the same for either. We have come up with one boy name and possible middle name. There is a chance once we decide on the first names we may share them but might keep the middle names secret since they have more meaningful significance.
As for the differences with this pregnancy and Austin.

Austin- nighttime queeziness.      Twins- six weeks straight all day sickness
Austin- heartburn from hell.          Twins- mild rare occurances of heartburn
Austin- constant nose bleeds.      Twins- no nose bleeds
Austin- craved fruit.                      Twins- craving the norm, ice cream, pickles and fried foods
Austin- pure exhaustion.               Twins- daytime insomnia
Austin- braxton hicks 30 weeks.  Twins- braxton hicks at 15 weeks
Austin- 1 ultrasound.                      Twins- 3 ultrasounds already more to come

Next up...24 weeks belly shot and one wild and busy summer!

Weeks 19-20 Over the Hump!

Not a whole lot going on the last couple weeks. The halfway point has come and gone which is Awesome! With a singleton pregnancy, 20 weeks is considered halfway but 18 or 19 weeks usually qualifies for multiples. This pregnancy is going much faster than when I was pregnant with Austin. I cannot really tell if its because I have gone through it once before or if it's because I am growing much faster? Either way, I think all pregnant women want the day to come quicker but I am starting to panic as things move closer. I truly know that I am capable of handling them, it's really only the sleep deprivation that is scaring me stupid. I am not at all excited about the mommy zombie phase that comes the first 3-6 weeks and with twins, I know it will be much longer before I am sane again.

Paul requested a bare belly shot before I get "ALIEN-like"
20 weeks

Some positive tidbits going on, I feel the babies often, everyday now! I have been playing the, "who is kicking me game?" from our last ultrasound I have been able to somewhat decipher if its her kicking (down low) or him (up high near my belly button) They have both had their share of hiccups already and my mom got to feel HIM just this morning. I am finally gaining some weight due to my tasty chocolate protein drinks and I am a comfortable size for doing most tasks. My pelvic pain is now gone and I hope it stays that way but I doubt it. I sleep well other than my ridiculous allergies that have started this week causing me to sleep upright but on my side in order to keep my nose clear! I celebrated my 33rd birthday, one which I consider to be a lucky birthday since I was born on the 3rd :)

Going out for my birthday dinner- make-up, hair and heels!!

Life is about to get more busy for me this next week. From January until now I have only really been working once or twice a week. Starting next week I have a new baby girl, she will be 6 weeks old coming to my house for 2 mornings a week. In addition, I will be watching Austin's best friend Hugh those same two days a week for May, June and July. Then in June I will be traveling back to Huron on Thursdays and Fridays to be with my best buddies Drake and Ellee! I am very excited to be able to have a full( money earning) summer. I will not be working from the time the twins come until about January so it will be nice to build a small savings. I only hope that my body stays happy and the babies stay content so that I am able to function this summer and not be put on bed rest. I do expect August to be a very different story and will probably cut back on most activity.

As for names, we still have only a girls first and middle name in mind but have not decided how public we will make the names. Male name picking does not come very easy to Paul. In fact, he is rather picky and difficult. I have spouted off just about every name I can possibly think of and we have no contenders even! He wants a name that is not ultra common yet not too different. So, once again it appears I will most likely fold and agree to the first name he actually suggests but hey, I guess we came up with the girls name quick so maybe he will let me have the final say on the spelling!

Next up will be another doctors appointment at the end of 21 weeks and another ultrasound at 22 weeks.

Babies at 20 weeks except our twins heads are next to each other.

Weeks 16-18 The moment of truth!

Twin Skulls

It seems each couple weeks becomes more and more eventful as we move forward. I am feeling the babies alot these days. We have progressed from bubble popping to full out kicks, punches and maybe some head butts! It is by far my favorite time of the pregnancy. My nausea has subsided, my pelvic pain comes and goes and I only have bouts of sleepiness here and there. I have an appetite which is nice but every time I sit down to eat I manage to only fit about a third of the food I want to eat. At my most recent Doctor Appointment I weighed-in with only a two pound gain from the start. My Doc is not so happy about this, "with twins you should have gained 6-8lbs by now." She advised me to start consuming two Boost protein shakes a day to ensure the babies will be a good birth weight. In addition, I had some good news too, my second thyroid screening revealed that I no longer have any abnormal hormone levels and that I do not have hyperthyroidism after all!! Hip hip hooray! My new symptom this month is Braxton Hicks. Yes, some may say, "that sure is early for that" but not for a multiples pregnancy. My uterus is growing at a much faster rate giving it more opportunities to spasm. There is no rhyme or reason to them. Some days I have multiple and other days none. I can be sitting or standing and there are no patterns. As I get larger they will come more and more. For those who don't know the feeling, my stomach tightens and gets hard like a bowling ball. The pressure causes you to feel like you need to use the restroom. They can be very uncomfortable at times but mostly annoying because they stop me in my tracks!

Now onto the the news everyone has been waiting for! All three of us went to the ultrasound appointment. We had snacks and games on hand for Austin because these appointments tend to last about 2 hours! He was a trooper. Austin sat in daddy's lap the whole time I was on the exam table. Right away we discovered that Baby A might not cooperate so our tech measured Baby B first. A couple measurements here and some others there and then it was time! Baby B is a BOY! No surprise there really, he was very proud to let us know! I will be honest, I was very nervous at this point. We really want to have a girl and we are only one more chance away from getting her.

Baby Boy parts

 My heart was pounding as we finished up with Baby B and moved down to see if Baby A was ready to cooperate! Yay, it was, it was not in the greatest position but we had to get measurements first anyway. It was me that first noticed the difference with this one. As the tech measured leg bones I saw what I wanted to see....nothing! Meaning no penis, "oh my gosh, was this a girl??" Yes! She was, the tech announced, "well looks like you get to have your GIRL!" We were so happy and I was crying happy tears and so relieved! What a perfect family, two boys and a little girl!!! It's the combination I have always wanted! Our ultrasound Doctor came in then and confirmed they are for sure girl and boy and that so far our genetic tests show that our babies are normal. Each weighs 8 ounces and baby B the boy is measuring just slightly smaller than baby A. They also have their own placentas and have not fused so we shouldn't have any problems with them growing at the same rate. We will now be having an ultrasound every 4 weeks to keep any eye on them! As of now Baby A is breech, it is very early and she could move positions. If she does not decide to move though, I will be having a C-section delivery.

Baby Girl parts

Now the fun begins, I had been patiently waiting to find out the gender before I started spouting off names. We do have a girl name in mind that has several spelling alternatives to decide on but once again we are at a complete loss for a boy :/ It will be neat to come up with two names we love! I am so happy that I have all the boy clothes I need and that we have plenty of people offering up a girl wardrobe for her! I am not matchy matchy when it comes to twins so I am glad that they are different genders. That will allow them to have their own clothing identities with an occasional color coordination. Case in point, their very different red, white and blue outfits below yet appropriately matching :)

Baby Girl profile and Baby Boy frontal face view

My attempt at Austin Announcing

The official facebook Announcement!

Weeks 12-15 A BIG Surprise, the announcement and lots to think about!

Week 12 has arrived and I am headed into the Doctor for that first genetic ultrasound. My mom is with Austin and I tell Paul to go to work because it's just routine stuff! Ha! After drinking my huge water and not using the restroom for the best photo results, I climb up on the table, get covered with goo and joke with the tech,

Me:  "Well, I am here to see if there are two in there!"
Tech: "Let me check some quick things and then we can investigate."

About two minutes of basic measurements...

Tech: "Well, you are right, there are two babies!!"
Me: "Oh my God, really!" As I cup my hand over my mouth in shock and say, "oh my gosh, oh my gosh," giggle alittle, "oh my gosh," tears start streaming!
Tech: "See, there are two sacs"
Me: "Does that mean they are fraternal?"
Tech: "Most likely but not always"
Me: "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh," more tears!

She proceeds to measure both babies and get their heartbeats. 160 and 158 BPM and measuring 12w1day each! She hands me a roll of photos and I stare in amazement still absorbing the information. The Doc comes in and goes through the risks of a multiple pregnancy and informs me that now I get to have an ultrasound every 6 weeks! Yay, that's exciting, I only had 1 total with Austin.

Now to tell Paul. I call him in the elevator as I leave.

Me: " Hi Honey, well I have some really big news!"
Him: Silence
Me: "You want to guess?"
Him: "Oh no, no, no!"
Me: "Well, you guessed right then, we are having twins!"
Him: "How sure is it, this early?"
Me: "Very sure, wait till you see the pic, they are both in it!"

Baby B and Baby A

I let him go then, he needed space. I am glad he wasn't with me, he would have taken away from my happy tearfilled moment. I knew it would be hard on him. He asked me later in the day for the photo and was just stunned at the quality! The afternoon and evening consisted of calling everyone with the news and announcing it to the Facebook world a couple days later making it officially out in the open.

My 12 weeks Belly, I would like to note that I was not this large with Austin until 16 weeks!

Many things have gone through our minds in the past weeks. How long can I work, do we have enough money? When can I return to wotk after? What about vacations? Money money money! Oh, will I never sleep again? Can we do this? They will out number us. What things do we need? I yi yi!

A week or two later, the shock is over and we have decided to find out their genders at the next ultrasound, who wants to pick out 4 name scenarios... Not us! We didn't find out with Austin. So many different things this time around.

Fraternal Twin at 12 weeks

In the meantime, my nausea has mostly subsided and I'm off the meds. I now take extra folic acid and slow release iron along with my prenatal vitamins. I have gained 2lbs back to 117 and gained 2 sometimes 3 inches in my belly, it changes throughout the day. I have developed a very nasty pain in my pelvis. It feels like it's bruised or broken. Certain actions are terrible. Getting in and out of the car, tuning in bed, getting out of bed. Walking in general, standing from a seated position. The Doctor said this is normal as the baby weight is still very low. As they start to move more up and out, I might experience some relief. I am trying to limit heavy lifting, groceries, laundry and my heavy toddler, I guess carrying him on my hip is a big NO NO!

 I can feel the babies move internally, not externally with my hand yet. Feels like popping bubbles, sometimes stronger like a real kick.

 We also have wonderful news that my cousin Chip and his wife Lindsay welcomed the first Keller twins, two boys! We are excited to have someone in our boat and I love chatting with Lindsay about what I should expect. Next up, ultrasound on April 21st, my grandmas birthday!