Kicking Off Week 20

I promise I have not forgotten about my fellow bloggers or even my own blog. I have had so many blog topics floating around in my little preggo brain; however, when I actually sit down to pound the words out on my keyboard, it just does not happen. I am still reading blogs. I just have to read them through my blog app which sometimes makes it hard for me to comment. Please know I'm still praying for all of you ladies who are still waiting for your miracle(s).


How Far Along?:  20w1d ish. The babies are measuring 4 days ahead according to our ultrasound last week. 

Due Date: January 14th. Dr. W told us last Tuesday that he will not let me go past December 31st though. I will be 38w by then and the babies should be all nice and plump. 

 

Weight Gain: 14lbs total. That's pretty dang good considering I'm carrying 2 babies, 2 sacs, 2 placentas, and I can barely do all of the workouts on my pre-natal DVD anymore. I've resorted to walking late in the evenings or early mornings. I've also tried to be SUPER careful what I eat. I'm not obsessing over my weight. I just know I need to remain as healthy as possible for the babies.

 

Maternity Clothes: I've stocked up on some fall maternity clothes to carry me through the 2nd half of this pregnancy; however, I guess I had a mild memory lapse and I forgot August in Tennessee is 2 degrees colder than Hades. Basically, I'm squeezing my belly into the last little bit of summer maternity clothes that still fit. Hurry up fall!!!

 

Sleep: I made a few pillow adjustments and it has made ALL of the difference in the world! I still wake up 2-3 times a night to use the bathroom, but at this point I'm not 100% I'm fully awake when I do so.

Best Moment This Week:  I had a few!

• A stranger asked me, "When are you due?" She then told me about her adopted new born baby. It was neat. I was excited to know I finally look pregnant to people other than my family and friends!
• Finalizing the nursery bedding. It is on our registry now. There is no turning back! I'm so glad to have this behind us now. I was really stressing out over it!
• Seeing our TWO HEALTHY little miracles wiggling, flipping, kicking, and sucking their thumbs on the ultrasound screen!
• Getting a confirmation on the genders of our precious little ones.
• Telling our friends and family the genders and names of our babies!!
• Adding TWO baby showers to my calendar! I cannot believe this is all of happening! I'm so excited and can hardly wait to celebrate our little ones with my friends and family!

Weird Pregnancy Moment:  Still rockin' the swollen feet and ankles. Thanks to Tennessee's awesomely hot late summer heat wave.

 

Movement: I've learned the babies LOVE when Mommy eats pasta (or Italian rather). I can really get them moving after a bowl of spaghetti or lasagna! I feel Baby A more than Baby B at this point. I'm sure Baby B is hitting the placenta more than me cause it sure looked like someone couldn't sit still on the ultrasound screen earlier this week!

Symptoms: All of them. Kidding. Kidding.  Growing belly, nasal congestion (this one is new in the last few weeks), frequent trips to the bathroom, increased appetite, round ligament pain, pelvic pain, pregnancy mask, swollen ankles and feet, shortness of breath, heartburn, and growing boobs.  See! All of them!

Cravings/ Aversions: Still drinking a lot of milk.

Anything Make You Queasy:  Not eating when I get hungry. I sometimes get queasy when my heartburn get too out of control too. The past few nights I have gotten a little queasy once I get home from work, and I haven't felt like eating supper. I do force myself to eat something though.

Gender: ****DRUM ROLL PLEASE........

Baby A is a wiggly worm baby boy named Ryker Christian.

Baby B is an active aspiring gymnast named Averlee Elizabeth.

 

Our firm "guess" at our 15 week ultrasound was boy/ girl so we were super excited to hear the babies were still boy/girl! 

Many people have asked about their names. Here's the scoop on that.
Big Brother Gavin stressed over naming the babies from the day he found out he would be a big brother to twins. Everytime he got in the car, we had to run through a list of names and "yay" or "nay".  One day he said something about "Ryker". I told him I would consider it. A few days later, Trey was googling baby boy names and he also mentioned "Ryker". At that point, it just seemed like our baby boy was destined to be a Ryker. 

We came across the name Averlee at the beginning of our journey in 2012. There was a sweet little girl at one of our bridal showers named Averlee, so I kept the name in my back pocket until it was time to start trying to get pregnant. 

The twins will have our middle names which are both family names. Christian is Trey's middle name and also my mother-in-law's maiden name. Elizabeth is my middle name, my best friend's middle name, and I have 2 great aunts who were named Elizabeth.

Bump Date - Week 17 and almost 18

Here's a bumpdate that comes with a very slight rant. Hang tight, friends. I was told from the very beginning how different a twin pregnancy would be from a singleton pregnancy. I thought I had my mind wrapped around the fact there would be two small humans growing together in a small space and after baking for 36-38 weeks, they would come out and we would bring home 2 little miracles. Little did I know, there is SO much more that goes into a twin pregnancy. The all day sickness in the beginning was almost unbearable at times. The other pregnancy symptoms set in quicker than with a singleton and they are 2x more intense. It wasn't until a very inconsiderate co-worker made a rude comment earlier in the week that I realized, I am experiencing something that so many people may have only read about. It is hard to explain what it is like growing 2 of God's miracles inside of me to someone who doesn't quite understand. Just because you delivered a 9lb baby at 40 weeks, does not mean you know all about carrying twins. There are so many more complications, discomforts,tests, worries, fears, and symptoms that go along with carrying twins. I'm not asking for a pitty party. I'm just trying to explain that when I say, "I bet my last day of work will be the end of November." ... do not belittle me by telling me, "OH but I carried a 9lb baby and never had to go on bedrest. That's like carrying twins." It isn't. Just stop.

**Off my soap box.**  Now here's my late (as usual) bumpdate...


How Far Along?:  17w6d (ish)  The babies were measuring a few days ahead at my last appointment so I'm a little unsure on the days.

Due Date: We just tell people the babies will be here in December. That way I avoid all of the "You're due in January and you're already THAT big?!" comments.  

 

Weight Gain: At my last OB appointment, I was up 10lbs. I have gained 4lbs since then I believe. Actually, I do not really trust my scale at home. I'll just say I haven't gained A LOT since my last appointment, but I have added a few pounds. It is all part of it!  

 

Maternity Clothes: I'm in maternity clothes all the way down to my panties. In the last week or so my belly has really poked on out there. Some of the non-maternity clothes I bought in bigger sizes at the beginning of our last treatment cycle are even too snug now to wear in public. I still have 20 more weeks! What am I going to wear?! ha.  I did make a few Motherhood Maternity purchases yesterday to boost my self confidence. I have a gift card to Target I am dying to use, but I'm trying to wait until they have their fall/ winter clothes out.

 

Sleep: I do not sleep well. I wake up to use the bathroom at least 3 times per night. I do a lot of just laying in bed with my eyes closed and hoping I will fall asleep soon. I look at it as conditioning for when the babies arrive in a few months!

Best Moment This Week:  Picking out bedding for the nursery, attempting to clean out the room that will soon be the nursery, and finalizing names for precious little ones!

Weird Pregnancy Moment:  My feet have grown and I no longer have ankles. I knew these things would eventually happen, but apparently with twins... they happen suddenly and MUCH sooner than in singleton pregnancies. OH! Let's not let this bumpdate pass us by without me addressing the # of people who have grabbed, rubbed, patted my belly. I get it. It is round. It just really makes me uncomfortable when people other than my husband touch me in such a way. You wouldn't touch my belly if I wasn't pregnant and I sure wouldn't walk up and grab anyone else's belly. So basically I'm saying, Please look with your eyes, not your hands!

 

Movement: Sometimes I feel things that I think might be movement, but I'm never really sure. The babies have anterior placentas - which means their placentas are at the front of my uterus. When they kick or wiggle, they actually hit their placentas instead of me. I'm hoping I will be able to feel them soon. I've really been worried in the last few days because I haven't felt anything. I do feel pressure where Baby A is at night. If I push and poke around enough, I can feel a hard spot where Baby B is too.

Symptoms: All of them. Kidding. Kidding.  Growing belly, nasal congestion (this one is new in the last few weeks), frequent trips to the bathroom, increased appetite, round ligament pain, pelvic pain, pregnancy mask, swollen ankles and feet, shortness of breath, heartburn, and growing boobs.  See! All of them!

Cravings/ Aversions: Still drinking a lot of milk. I do not really have any consistent cravings. I still have an aversion to sweets. I did have a root beer float earlier in the week to see if I could get the babies moving and swooshing around.

Anything Make You Queasy:  Not eating when I get hungry. I sometimes get queasy when my heartburn get too out of control too.

Gender: We have been given a very firm "guess", but it will have to be confirmed at our 20w anatomy scan. Lucky for us, our scan is actually scheduled for 18w6d... so we will get an early peek! We will know NEXT WEEK!!! ahhh.... cannot wait!

What I'm Looking Forward To:  2 words: ANATOMY. SCAN. Other than that, I'm just trying to soak in each day as it comes. I cannot believe we are halfway there! I'm so ready to see their sweet little faces!