34 weeks...the last month!

So yesterday was my 34 week mark!  Wooo-hoo!  I can tell things are getting close because last week I finally started experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions, which is a good thing.  Labor and delivery wanted to see me since they were strong and frequent, but all tests they took seemed to check out fine.

I am starting on the fetal heartbeat monitoring twice a week, and a weekly doctor visit.  The heartbeat monitoring has gone fairly well so far, considering our boy's heartbeat is always a little slower than our girl.  The fluid in our boy's sac has increased a little, which can be a cause for concern for preterm labor, but since I am already at 34 weeks the doctor thinks most of the risk is minimal.

The doctor and I discussed a day for my scheduled cesarean section, which would be at 38 weeks gestation......the date we set is October 17th!!!  I am so excited!  It's only 4 weeks away, so I don't know if these last few weeks will drag, or fly like the wind!  Of course if natural labor begins before that date, then we will have an earlier delivery.  Either way, I only have a max of 4 weeks left!  We will be delivering at UC Davis hospital in Sacramento, and will most likely be there for up to 5 days after the delivery.

I am so blessed to have had the privilege of being pregnant with twins, this truly has been an amazing and special time in my life!  I love my two little ones more than words can say, and I know that love will deepen beyond my wildest dreams when I will finally be able to hold them in my arms.

Thanks for all your love and support!!!

32 weeks...Almost there!

Well...I can't believe I made it this far!  I've heard of so many twins that come early, therefore causing all kinds of problems for their little underdeveloped bodies.  But my doctor said that as long as I can make it to 32 weeks I'll have a fairly good chance of delivering fairly healthy babies.

The main goal in any multiple pregnancy (twins or supertwins), is to stay pregnant for as long as possible.  One doctor in the book I've been reading, "When You're Expecting Twins, Triplets, or Quads", likens a pregnancy to a game of football, each critical phase of pregnancy you can successfully pass gets you closer to achieving your "touchdown".  I really liked that analogy.  Eating healthy, taking the appropriate supplements, and getting some daily exercise are the things the book stresses (among others) in helping achieve a long and healthy (multiple) pregnancy.

This has been a very unique pregnancy than most others.  I began the usual "symptoms" a lot sooner than an singleton pregnancy.  I had to leave work extra early, my feet and legs began swelling extra early, and of course the most common symptom for multiples....gestational diabetes.  I knew as soon as we found out it was twins, there would be more complications and issues than normal.  It was especially hard hearing the news of our son, and the emotional aspect has put an extra strain on my already fatigued body.

I am so grateful to have many close friends and family to help and support me along the way.  You guys are the best.  There have been so many miracles along the way, that I have not felt alone.  There are things that we experience that we can't always explain, but I know that I have had the spirit of the Holy Ghost with me along the way.  It seems that every time I feel too tired or too sad to go on, a little miracle will remind me that I don't have to face these things alone.  And I am so grateful for that comforting presence.  I know that the hardest part is yet to come, and I hope to draw on my relationship with the Savior to get through it all.

Anyway, 'nuf of the mushy stuff.  Here are some new baby pics!

This is a profile of our sweet our daughter, who now weighs approximately 4 pounds.  She is so cute, and stays active by playing soccer with her little brother in her mommy's belly :)

Here is a cute picture of our little son...if you look closely, there is a light colored line in the middle of his picture (that look kind of squiggly).  These are his little fat rolls!  How sweet is that?

If you look close on the upper right, you can see his little profile.  The nose at the top, cute little lips, and chin.  This is probably the best profile picture we've gotten yet!

Thanks for visiting!

30 weeks...A shower to remember!

This weekend many of my dearest friends threw me the most amazing baby shower I could have ever dreamed of! Absolutely STUNNING!

Every detail was thought of, and it didn't go unnoticed. A beautiful array of delicate, tasty mini sandwiches, a plethora of tempting salads, and mini iced baby themed cookies were placed on the beautifully decorated tables for each guest to take home. We ate on beautiful china while listening to soft music in the background. The weather couldn't have been more beautiful, and Kathleen's backyard was the perfect romantic setting for a summertime shower.

The shower couldn't have been more perfect. Period.

I always knew I had some amazingly talented and awesome friends....but this shower just proved it even more.

Thank you to those who made the evening a special one (you know who you are!), I know a lot of work and effort went into the preparations and I can't express enough how much it means to me.

Thank you to all who attended, having you there made the evening extra special! Thank you for the wonderful and tender gifts, they will be cherished always.

I will let the pictures below speak for themselves. Enjoy!

28 weeks...Hello 3rd Trimester!

Here is a picture of our daughter's profile we got at our 27 week growth scan at the hospital. The babies looked as cute as ever, all snuggled up in my womb.

In the picture below, on the left you can see our daughters head, with our sons feet right there in her face!



The picture below was taken by accident by the doc....any guesses on what it is? I'll give you a hint, there's two of them.



So the doctor said our daughter is about 2 lbs 12 ounces....almost 3 lbs! She said she is growing great, and everything looks good! I even started feeling her little hick-ups last week!

Our little sons heartbeat is as strong as ever, and moves and kicks like normal.

I found out last week that I have gestational diabetes. Bummer! Apparently it is very normal in multiple pregnancies, and will likely leave after delivery. It means I have to watch my blood sugar levels, and get more exercise. If I can control it with diet and exercise alone, then meds won't be necessary. I hope I don't have to use meds, because it can create more problems for the babies down the road. I'm supposed to report my sugar levels to the doctor once a week....so that means I can't cheat on my diet! Well, OK, maybe I can have a piece of cake at my shower :)

So I'm super excited that this Friday is my last day at work! FINALLY! I'll now be able to enjoy maternity leave and take care of some things at home; the nursery, find a pediatrician (anyone have any recommendations?), think of more baby names, etc. etc. I am really looking forward to it!

Thanks for reading everyone!

26 weeks...Surprise shower!

Several weeks ago my awesome family threw me a surprise baby shower! To say the least, I was very surprised! Not only were my aunts, cousins, in laws there, but my dear sister Tami and my nephew Isaiah came down all the way from Boise! It was so so so great to have everyone there! The best part was that they had kept it such a secret, I didn't even know it was going to be in my own house! And I'm a hard person to keep secrets from.

Here are some pics of the party.



A group photo...



My two wonderful sisters...



More family and friends...



Opening gifts...



And spending time with those I love...






Another highlight of the past several weeks is that I feel GREAT! My appetite is back...no more nausia for me, I am sleeping fairly well, and the pregnancy in general is going well. I still feel fatigue most of the time, and still have some swelling, but I have been very lucky that this has been such a cool summer!

The babies are now 26 weeks, and our next trip to the doctor is the first week in August. So until then....here are some precious photos of their 23 week mark! Enjoy!

Our daughters face (on the right)...



And a 3D image of her leg!



Our son's feet!



The babies are now the size of eggplants!

21 Weeks...Our Father's Day Surprise!

We had a great Father's Day weekend! Nice program at church... the family over for a nice delicious dinner...and a delectable dessert made by yours truly. But what made it an extra special day was a surprise from the twins!

During the first hour of church, we were sitting quietly on the pew, when all of the sudden I felt three distinct kicks inside my belly. Now in the past week or so, I've felt similar movements but just dismissed it as "digestion". But this time it was different, I knew that what I was feeling was one of the babies, since it was higher in my belly....most likely our daughter. I put my hand over to see if I could feel anything, but unfortunately couldn't.

Later that night, after a very rich (in calories AND in caffeine) slice of my delectable Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake, we were turning in for the night. All of the sudden, I felt the same kicking as before, only this time it was lower in my belly...most likely our son. I immediately put Ryan's hand there, but he couldn't feel anything at first. A few minutes later, it did it again, and this time I could feel it with my hand on my belly! It was THE most amazing experience I've had so far in this pregnancy. It was like an electric shock went through my body...a sensation like no other! My baby was there and I could feel it! So I immediately placed Ryan's hand over the kicking, and he could feel it too. It was such a wonderful thing to be able to feel them from the "outside", especially on Father's Day! For the next several minutes, he was moving all around, playing soccer or something! So I guess he liked my cake :)

It's little moments like these that make pregnancy such a joy. It's truly a miracle to bond with your baby(ies) at such an early time in their development. It's even better when dad can experience a little glimpse of the miracle....especially on Father's Day!

The babies are now the size of bananas!

19 Weeks...It's a Girl and Boy!

That's right, we're having a girl and a boy! We are so excited about this wonderful news. Tuesday was our ultrasound at UC Davis Hospital in the Radiology dept., and my family and Ryan came to be with me during the full anatomy scan of the babies (which took almost 2 hours!). The doctor measures all the bones in each of the babies, and gives you an idea of their growth rate, etc.

Below are some ultrasound pics we got that day, which are so precious to me. Our little girl had the hickups during the ultrasound, and we could clearly see her little chest moving with each hickup. The doctor said it's very common and normal for babies to have hickups in the womb. I can't feel her having them yet, but I'm sure I will soon enough!

Here is our daughter, which Ryan affectionately calls "Leah"...



Our little son is just as precious and special as our little sweet daughter....if not more so. Ryan affectionately calls him "Luke"...



We were given some unexpected news during our genetic testing appointment at the beginning of the second trimester. They had me come in for the usual ultrasound to take a look at the developing fetuses. The ultrasound tech was very quiet as she viewed each baby. After the ultrasound was over, she said that I would have my results that day. She came back with a Radiologist and Genetic Counselor who explained to me that our son (then referred to as Baby A) had some problems.

They let me call Ryan at work so he could meet me and they could explain it to us together. She explained that the problem was with his head, that it had not formed properly by day 28 of conception. It is a neural tube deficiency known as anencephaly, where the developing fetus has no skull and no forehead. It is a fatal condition, and if the baby survives through the delivery, may only live a day or two. They explained that it was in no way any fault of our own, and that this rare condition occurs in about 1 in 10,000 babies.

Needless to say, I was in shock. It came as such a suprise, nothing could have prepared us for it. The days and weeks that followed were so incredibly hard and unbearable.

We had been through such an emotional roller coaster with our battle with infertility and IVF process already. We had 14 fertilized embryos, but only 2 looked "good". Our outlook was grim because of my age and other factors. After the very long "two week wait" it was confirmed that our IVF cycle was a success! My 6 week ultrasound revealed that we were having twins! That was an added bonus to our recent good news. We felt that we had been given "double the blessings", and were so excited to have twins.

We love our son dearly, and can't wait to one day hold him in our arms, and bond with that special little baby before he soon returns to the home from which he came.

The Lord works in ways that we don't always understand. I have come to learn that the last several years, as we all do in our own ways. I may never know in this life the purpose of my trials and hardships. But the point is to have faith and trust in Him, and rely on the Holy Spirit. I would be very ungreatful if I didn't recognize all the miracles (small and great) that have helped me along the way. It is a true testimony to me that we are loved, and that our families are a special blessing to cherish always.