They are here!

This will be a quick post for now.

The boys arrived on time yesterday morning at 9:01 and 9:02am. Baby A weighed in at a whopping 6.5 lbs and his brother is a healthy 5.1lbs. Both boys are in NICU because of some breathing issues. I'm waiting for the latest pediatritian report and I'll update more on that. They've switched status in the night as to which was doing better and I need more details.

I was sick through most of the evening and part of the night so I didnt get to spend much time with them. Things with me are much better this morning and I was in with them for a half hour. I cant hold them right now, they are too wired up, but hopefully this afternoon.

I've started pumping to get my milk in for when they can feed (both are on IVs right now, no food). Pumping is boring, but seems to be going well.

Sorry for the short update. I want to get the next report before I post much more. I have decided on names after my time with them this morning, but I need to tell my nearest and dearest first.

Another day on the inside

I think they want to write me up in a book of medical abnormalities now. I'm still here, boys still inside. My second 24 hour urine came back with double the protein, but still, my blood work remains normal. They honestly have no idea.

I got a very good glimpse today of what would happen if things changed in an emergency situation. My first roommate was due to go home today at 35 weeks to wait for her scheduled c-section at 38 weeks on Jun 15. Last night, her BP was up a bit and she had some protein in her urine. Her blood was okay last night, so they started her on a 24 hour urine and she had to give up hopes of going home today. This morning we both had our blood drawn (the norm for me). Less than 2 hours later, they rushed into her room to take her breakfast away. She was going to be delivering the second they had space in the OR. From the new screams I'm hearing down the hallway, I think they are back in her room. One of her family will be by to share news with me (we've gotten to know each other these past few weeks). We're hoping her B&G are perfect. As it turns out, as of this morning, there isn't a single NICU bed in the entire province! If either babe has problem, they will be airlifted to Edmonton, Calgary or Spokane. Wow. I hope they clear some space before Wednesday (or when I need it) - just in case.

For those who don't know, today is my birthday. Lots of people suggested that I give birth today as a good birthday present, but I really want them to make it to 35 weeks on Tuesday. It really improves their chances. So hopefully they will wait.

Oh, if you communicate with me via email rather than face.book, my webmail server seems to be down. I haven't been able to get to the site for a couple of days. I'm not ignoring you if you've been emailing, I just haven't gotten it.

Watch this space for updates. Hopefully sometime late Wednesday, pacific time.

2 Gold Stars

I'm off work now, but it feels like it's non-stop appointments now.
Today was the first non-stress test for me and the boys. They apparently flew through it with 2 gold stars!!! Their heartbeats were perfect and went up and down during/after movement. She said they were perfect. One tiny tightening of the uterus towards the end, not even enough to be braxton hicks. Next one is next week.
U/S last Thursday also went well. Boys are growing, really growing. They estimate A is over 5lbs now. Both still have big bellies. B is so high up, under my ribs its hard to get really good head measurements. Really hard to get good 'pictures'. She thinks they both have hair too. I really can't wait to meet them.
Yesterday, I had the first autologous blood donation (storing my own blood, just in case). I bled at the right rate. And for a few hours after, had normal blood pressure. I used to give blood all the time, but this is so much nicer. Its in a private room, just me and the nurse. I had a TV. They use an IV with saline because of course pregnant women cant get dehydrated. And more, they numb the area before the needle goes in. I felt nothing. Of course with GD, no juice and cookies for me after. I did have an ensure though (they are better than they used to be). Next one is next week.
Saw the OB today. My regular Dr was off, so I saw a fill in. It went well. Not much to worry about because it was only a few hours after the NST. I'm measuring 45 weeks. Uh yeah.
So, its business as usual. I'm to spend as much time as possible sitting and lying down. That's easy. I tire very easily and sleep lots (drool city).
So all seems well with me and the boys. Still no crib. I specifically picked one in stock that could be delivered that week (April 27th). They moved it from the Monday to the Wednesday. Then on Wednesday morning they called to say the crib wasnt at the dock when the picked it up, but would call to reschedule. No call. I called yesterday and apparently no one has done anything. So now a trace is put on it, she thinks they are out of stock. No call back yet. I'll be calling again tomorrow. There were more than 3 in stock when I paid for it. It wasnt my first or even second choice, but it was in stock and was a good one. Now they are saying it might be July. Um, no. Not going to happen. I have a pack and play that they can use for few weeks if necessary, but they had better fix this. I can guarentee that when it comes time to get a second crib, it will not be from s.ears if they don't fix it this week.
Okay, off my soap box now.
Updated giant belly shot soon. I promise.

The countdown begins

Sorry, I’m behind in blogging. I will admit some of it is because I’m more tired now (and lazy). Some is because there is someone in my building who drains the internet feed each night so that I have a few hours (when I’m normally online) that I can’t connect. I’ll be calling the internet company soon, but then they have to put a trace on and it will take a while. Meantime, I’m just living with it.

All appears to be well, or at least as well as can be expected. Let’s see, updates from last time.

I’m taking 4 insulin shots a day now. 2 are slow acting and 2 are fast acting. The 'pens' make this so easy to administer and most of the time is totally painless. The doses for both have been increased. I see the diabetic Dr every 2 weeks. She suspects as the pregnancy progresses that we’ll have to continue to increase until it goes away. I had a blood test to confirm that I wasn’t an undiagnosed diabetic before the pregnancy (just in case). It came back negative. So I’ll be able to stop the shots, cold-turkey the day I give birth. Right after the doses are increased, I track my blood sugar at 7 key times during the day. Then I can track only 4 times a day in between. So far, it’s not overly high, just a bit higher than they like. It’s never been really low (but I carry the sugar and candies with me just in case). My blood pressure appears to have gone down the tiniest bit (still high). Since the GD insulin and monitoring is the only change, it may have contributed (it may be a coincidence). I’d like it to go down a tiny bit more.

As expected, the last scan confirmed the placenta isn’t just sitting over the cervix, it’s firmly attached and not going anywhere. It’s so centered that they have a hard time seeing the cervix in a trans-abdominal scan and need the dildo-cam wand. They’d need the wand anyway to measure the cervix so no big deal. Happily, it’s still very closed and quite long (4.5cm). And still no spotting. But it does mean the c-section is a total done deal. In fact, I now have a delivery date (don’t know the time yet, but I really hope for morning). The boys will arrive in the world on May 27th at 35w1d, 3 days after their mother’s 43rd birthday. The best birthday present I could ask for. I’m donating a pint or two of my own blood, just in case. That gets sucked out at the end of April (and I’ll have closer to normal blood pressure for a day or two). I am hoping the boys are at least 5lbs each at this time and I don’t think I need to be concerned. I know inter-uterine weight estimates can be quite off, but at best guess, as of Tuesday, they weigh 3lbs 2oz (A) and 2lbs 12oz (B), for a combined weight nearing 6 lbs. I weighed 5lbs 2oz at full term birth. They are a bit bigger than I was……..

B remains transverse, all the time it seems. His head is to my left. If my bladder is fuller, raising the uterus up, he’s behind my ribs. A either remains in a breech position with his butt slightly to my right, or he lies down in a transverse postion, with his butt around center. Both roll over when transverse and have been facing forward, backward, up and down. When A is sitting in the breech position, he leaves himself very exposed to being knee-ed in the face by B. When he’s lying down, he seems to get kicked in the face, a no win situation. But the way he stays, he doesn’t seem to go far enough over to kick B in the head. I can feel A move almost all the time. B still scares me lots because I feel him less. I don’t relax during a scan until they show me him moving and I can see his heartbeat. Next scan is the end of this month.

Weight gain is up to 19 lbs now. Still progressing nicely. I realized last week that I’m going to have to face the scale going over the 200lb mark for the first time ever sometime before the pregnancy is done. Now before anyone tells me not to worry etc, I know that I need to gain weight and will do anything and everything to get these boys safely delivered. But to anyone who has battled weight, 200 is a psychological milestone. My brain needs to get past it. Don’t worry, I won’t diet or try to avoid it. It will happen and I’ll drop back down once the boys come (I think the boys, their sacs and placentas alone will more than take care of it). But it is something I have to get my head around.

Still nothing major in the symptom world. I get heartburn once in a while. It’s usually at night, but sometimes during the day. It’s not as bad as most people get and I rarely have it while lying on my left. My hair is noticeably straighter and less oily. Actually, all my hair is straighter….all of it, everywhere, yes, I mean there. I’m not sure if this is a common symptom or not. Oh, my feet are often swollen, particularly at the end of the day. I try to keep them up as much as possible, but I can’t really lay claim to an A width foot right now. Shoes all still fit because most were laced as tight as possible before and are just laced looser now. I move quite slowly now. I just don’t have the energy for anything else. I’ve got a maternity band that makes walking even the few blocks that I do go easier. But then it pinches when I’m sitting so I take it off when I’m sticking around somewhere for a while.

There is a Baby Fair tomorrow that I’m going to. It has some good seminar/talks that I want to listen in on, including baby and toddler first aid. Of course I’d love to win some prizes too, but will be happy with samples. Sunday is the next Twin Club meeting.

I’m still organizing at home. I need someone to move two bookcases out of my bedroom (I sold a few hundred of my several hundred books) and there will be enough room for the crib. Really, that’s what would be needed to be done for the first 3-6 months. The rest can be done once the boys arrive, but I’d like to get a bit further into things before they arrive. I’ll just go by how much energy I have and when. I’m going to put my not-used-in-a-while 55 gallon aquarium on cr..list next week and that will quickly clear out a section of the living room too.

I met the 3 week old baby boy down the hall last week. They are in a much smaller 1 bedroom than I am, with 2 adults, 2 dogs and 3 cats. I can see how that can easily work until the baby is mobile. Oh, the floor of my building is/will be baby central, mostly boys. A couple doors down one way is a 4 month old baby girl. 3 doors down the other way, she is expecting a boy in early August (5 weeks later than my official due date). The baby boy mentioned above is just 3 weeks old and adorable. It’s going to be great having so many of us so close in dates so close together.

Although I constantly worry, I am so happy there appears to be no problems with the boys. I’ll take the high blood pressure, GD, limited activity and all over them having issues. There are some women out there in the online buddies groups who aren’t as lucky. Some are still struggling to get or stay pregnant. Some are dealing with issues and concerns with one or more of their little ones. I wish I could do something for them. Words of support seem so little comparison to their struggles. I so admire their strength and determination. And it makes me more grateful each day for the health of my boys.

I’ll see about loading some of the more recent scan pictures later. Depends on if the internet is up, and if I’m up.