23 Weeks

How Far Along? 23 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 19.5 lbs.

Sleep: Brutal! I wake up every two hours. I wonder if it's the body's way of preparing for being up all night with babies.

Best Moment of the Week: I had a sonogram yesterday that my friend, Ali, and my sister, Joanna, got to attend. The girls are both doing great, and they're huge. They're supposed to be 1 lbs., and they're both weighing 1 lbs. 5 oz. The doctor asked me what I was feeding them. The answer is Big Mac meals.

Movement: All the time. Jon even felt them move a couple of times. They love Fanta BTW. I picture them doing the Fanta girls dance every time I drink it.

Belly Button: How is this mother hanging on? It's on the brink of inside out at any moment. And let me tell you that my former belly button ring hole looks really sexy.

What I Miss: My neck.

What I Am Looking Forward To: Showers! I have two showers in January that I cannot wait for!

Weekly Wisdom: Gymboree $3.99 bin. Don't even get me started. The girls have enough clothes to last them a year now, and I only spent $60.

Milestones: Next week the babies would technically be viable if they were born. I think the Duggar baby that was just born was 24 weeks. It wouldn't be pretty, but it's a relief to know that they'd have a chance.

21 Weeks

How far along? 21 weeks.
Total weight gain: 12.5 lbs.
Maternity clothes? Yes, and I'm already sick of them. I went shopping the other day, forgetting that I'm a freak of nature right now. I keep picking up clothes in normal sizes and completely disregarding my 15 lbs. stomach tumor. Delusional.
Sleep: Aah--I've been sick. I never thought the day would come when I would have a humidifier set up in my bedroom. I do.
Best moment this week: Knowing that Christmas is only a week away. I adore Christmas.
Movement: Yes, but now this just gives me another reason to be paranoid. They've really chilled out these past couple of days, and now I'm obsessively googling about it.
Gender: Definitely two girls! The doctor confirmed that at the last appt. and that they are healthy and actually a little big for their age.
Labor Signs: Nope.
Belly Button in or out? In, but that is one stressed out bellybutton. It is literally being pulled in two different directions.
What I miss: I was never really a beer drinker before I got pregnant, but I've really been craving beer this week. Weird.
What I am looking forward to: Christmas!!!
Weekly Wisdom: Stretch marks are not the worst thing that can happen to your stomach. How about creepy spider veins ON MY STOMACH!
Milestones: I'm over halfway through!

The Nursery!

Okay, we've made some serious progress on the nursery in the past month. In fact, everything is basically ready to go except for the bedding. Here are some pics:

It took Jon from 11 am to 4 pm Saturday to get these two cribs together. Bless his heart.

That's my new cozy rocking chair and my good-as-new swing, courtesy of my friend Sharion!

The product of another of Jon's entire Saturdays:

Finally, I bought some really pretty organic bedding from Pottery Barn Kids, but when it came in it was that really ugly, no manufactured dye, all-natural color. Screw being green. So, I took it back, and I'm taking that as permission to go nuts with the bedding--as commercial as possible. I found this really cool vintage fabric, and I'm not sure how I'm going to use it yet, but I'm thinking it does have a future in the room.

It's paper dolls! Have you ever seen anything that adorable in your life?

Anyway, I'll update when the bedding decisions are final. This is important stuff, people.

18 Weeks

Please notice the extreme vein action popping up on my stomach. I'm officially see-through.

How far along? 18 weeks.

Total weight gain: 7-10 lbs. depending on the day

Maternity clothes? Fo' sho--wrangling this giant stomach into anything has become a chore. it does not want to be contained.

Sleep: I have to sleep on my side now because of the pressure from the girls, and I am not a side sleeper, so sleep consists of a lot of labored rolling fro. side to side. I've had better.

Best moment this week: Wednesday I have another sonogram! They're going to verify that it's two girls and just give me some peace of mind. I was so spoiled have sonograms every two weeks that now it's been 5-6, and I'm dying!

Movement: Just started! I was telling my friend, Keri, that I assumed what I was feeling was something else because everyone I talked to was like, "It feels like a bubble, or a feather, or a tickle." What I was feeling felt like a little teeny baby kicking me from the inside. I thought it was too easy.

Gender: Most likely two girls!

Labor Signs: Please.

Belly Button in or out? In, but hanging on by a thread. I predict an outie in the near future.

What I miss: Wine. Something about fall weather makes me want to curl up with a book and a glass of wine every night. Nothing gets you through the holidays quite like a little buzz.

What I am looking forward to: Finishing the nursery. All I have left to get are the cribs and the bedding. I'll start posting pics soon.

Weekly Wisdom: A cheese platter is not a recipe for success in ending a stubborn poop situation.

Milestones: Feeling the babies kick!

Luckiest Girl Evah!!

Okay, so Monday afternoon Jon calls me and asks if I want to go to St. Kitts with him for a deposition. What a waste of three minutes--who's turning that down?

So, Wednesday morning we left our house at 4 am to board our 6am flight to Miami. Only, no one ever told our pilot that it's a great idea to check for malfunctioning engines before the plane is pulling out of the terminal. So, two hours later we're on a new plane to Miami, missing the only flight of the day to St. Kitts. Needless to say, we were pissed. But, we made the best of it and ate dinner at Gloria Estefan's Cuban restaurant in South Beach. For not the first time in my life, I felt like Kathy Griffin (if you watch D list, you'll know what I'm talking about.)

The next day we got on a flight, and finally made it to St. Kitts. Jon had a deposition when we got there, but I read at the beach until he was ready and then we went to the most beautiful restaurant I've ever been to.

It was called The Beach House, and it was one of those inside/outside concepts. There were no walls, just curtains and you could hear the crashing waves that were like 20 feet away. Awesome.Then, since we only had the next day to spend in St. Kitts, we made the most of it and toured the island before going to the beach.

Breakfast on the beach.

Really old fertility drawings--would have been nice to have about a year ago.

Toured a famous fort.Went to a place where they make those Caribbean fabric prints.

And then, to the most beautiful beach ever. They had funny, tame animals running around like pigs and monkeys and a delicious restaurant right on the beach where you could get fresh lobster sandwiches. And, they had me in a pregnant bikini. Never thought that would happen.

Best vacation ever, and the best best babymoon, considering I probably won't be doing anything like this again for a LONG time.

14 Weeks

So, I am big, fat showing now. Every once in a while, some well-intending lady will say, “Well, you’re not even showing yet.”

This, however, is offensive. Do you think my stomach normally looks like this?

Now, I’m in the long-haul until my next doctor’s appt. I had one last week where I tried to nail her down to a for-sure “bed rest” (or just paid leave) at 28 weeks, but she wouldn’t budge. I’m going to have to feign some contractions next time. My next appt. isn’t until November 25th.

I can usually go about 1-2 weeks between appointments and still believe that nothing catastrophic has happened in my uterus. Any more than that, and I’m googling “miscarriages with no symptoms,” “incidents where babies disappeared,” or “turned out babies were really just tumors with hair and teeth (you know the ones I’m talking about).” Needless to say, Google is never short of horrifying stories and rare occurrences. It’s keeping me on my toes.

I was also a little stressed that I had only gained a few pounds as of last week. I know this sounds incredibly annoying, and believe me, if you saw my thighs right now you’d know that I wasn’t being the complainy anorexic. It’s just that I’m supposed to gain 24 lbs. by 24 weeks. Well, I’m 14 weeks today, and Hello, my weight gain just kicked in. I had gained three pounds in total from weeks 1-13. Week 14 has already brought me three new pounds, and we’re only halfway through. At this rate I might end up weighing more than my Prius. Crisis averted (depending on who you’re talking to).

Woo-hoo!

Well, we had our 12 week NT scan this week. The purpose of this scan is to detect possible Downs Syndrome or other genetic defects. The real purpose for me was finding out the sexes.

I brought my mom with me because Jon needed a break from doctors' appointments. My mother, God bless her, was pretty hyped up. As the doctor was scanning and measuring, he would tell us what he was looking at, and my mom would interrupt and say, "We just want to know what's between the legs." Not whether or not the baby has a potentially life-altering defect--not important. Just pink or blue.

She also decided that she could tell by looking at their facial features what they were before the doctor made his determination. She was like, "See that one has very feminine facial features, and the other obviously has very masculine features." She was cracking me up. Especially when the doctor announced that he's 98% sure we're having TWO GIRLS!!! My mom was like, "See, I told you the one had feminine features." I guess we're ignoring her other prediction. Anyway, I'm really glad she came. It made for quite the experience, and she said it was the best day of her life. :)

Baby A seems like she might be the crazy one. She was bucking around and kicking, flipping so much that the doctor could hardly get his measurements.

Baby B might be the little pacifist. She just peacefully sucked her thumb the entire time and didn't move an inch. You can see her sucking her thumb in this picture.

I am beyond thrilled. From the beginning I've said if it were up to me, we'd have two girls. Jon's really excited too. He always said he didn't have a gender preference, and I didn't believe him, but I guess he really didn't. When I told him it was two girls, he was a little speechless, and then, of course, his analytical side came out, and he stated that this could really play to our strengths. I just went out and started buying things--can't stop. Woo-hoo!

Random Musings on Being Pregnant

1. I am too tired to ever write anything clever on this blog. If I were to dictate my usual thoughts, they would read like this:

“Macaroni and Cheese sounds really good right now . . . I could eat the shit out of some macaroni . . . so tired . . . one nipple is throbbing, just one . . . pillow . . . like someone is giving me a 7th grade style titty-twister. . . have to pee . . . already have gone nine times today . . . zzzz . . . if it’s a freaking trickle again I’m going to be pissed . . . Eric from True Blood.”

And scene. And thus, this is why my posts have been few and far between.

2. When I lie down, it feels like there are two dictionaries stacked on my abdomen. This is disconcerting as no one needs to be thinking about her job as an English teacher when she’s trying to watch Bridezillas.


3. Thursday I go in for my 12 weeks scan and to potentially find out the genders. The aspect of motherhood that I am most looking forward to is buying teen-tiny nightgowns, so after Thursday I might be able to do this choosing gender-appropriate colors.

4. On a heavier note, this article ruined my weekend: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/11/health/11fertility.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=In%20Vitro&st=cse

There are very few infertility patients who haven’t spent thousands of hours researching every aspect of infertility and pregnancy. To imply that these same people are making misguided, uneducated, and possibly selfish decisions to implant more than one embryo is ridiculous. Not to mention, has the NY Times ever heard of kicking someone when they’re down? The first question I get when someone finds out I’m pregnant with twins is whether or not they were “natural” or from IVF. So, I get to relive my private and painful two-year battle with every acquaintance I run in to, and then to give them one-sided ammunition to judge that process is cruel.

10 weeks

How far along? 10 weeks.

Total weight gain: 1 lbs.

Maternity clothes? a little--don't judge

Sleep: like a baby who has to get up and pee every 2 hours

Best moment this week: getting the new wallpaper installed for the nursery. Pictures to come!

Movement: Not yet.

Gender: We might find out in two weeks!

Labor Signs: Please.

Belly Button in or out? In.

What I miss: Seeing 10 o'clock

What I am looking forward to: NT scan in two weeks. I'm convinced that doomed in between each scan. I tend to be major glass half empty.

Weekly Wisdom: Do not drink fizzy orange drinks for breakfast. Gag central.

Milestones: First toxoplasmosis scare. Cow (the cat) had a giant log stuck to his butt because he's too fat and lazy to clean himself. Thus, Jon had to give him a bath, scraping the poop off his butt. It was definitely a fatherhood test--Jon passed.

Now, I'm definitely selling my pride down the river posting these pictures:

Six weeks a.k.a. Debra with massive bloat.

10 weeks--WTF?!!! Granted, I had just eaten a huge bowl of macaroni and cheese, but seriously? Twins, shwins--more like septuplets.

I'm Baaaack!

Okay, it's been about a year since I left you, and we have a lot to catch up on.

1. I've been trying to get pregnant since June '08. I realized that something was not normal about my lack of success right about the time I quit the last blog. Turns out Jon and I are reproductively challenged. I, personally, think this could be God's way of saying that the annoying qualities we both individually possess could not be contained in one life form, and he was sparing civilization from the next Carrot Top. Even still, we soldiered on.

2. I went on Clomid about this time last year. After six rounds, it seemed that it wasn't helping either. So, I went to my first appointment with a reproductive specialist; we'll call him Dr. High Heels. I've got to tell you about this guy. He's a really short, thick man with a receding hairline and a tongue about three sizes too big for his mouth. The first time I met him, he was wearing scrubs, a lab coat, and highest-heeled mens' shoes I have ever seen--example below.










3. Flash-forward to this July: After months of trying to complete a successful round of in vitro fertilization, we were finally able to transfer two, healthy blastocysts.















4. And, we found out that they both stuck! Here they are at nine weeks:
















Yay--I'm pregnant with twins!!!

I can't wait to give you stories from the past year (I have a particularly good one waiting in the wings that involves contractions and Zach Efron). So, thanks for coming back or for joining in!