Sitting and Waiting...

Today is my first day of maternity leave! It's strange to know that I'm done with work for a long time. I am pretty tired and uncomfortable, so I'm not going to have the most productive next few weeks. Just below the surface I feel like cooking all day long and getting every little thing ready for babies, but then there's reality... I can't be on my feet very long (because I start hurting, not due to dr. orders or anything) and I take frequent naps. So, my freezer will remain empty and my house will not be spotless :) I'm okay with that though. I just want these babies to keep growing and growing.

We're 36 weeks today! This was our main goal date, so I'm thrilled to be here. The babies are still very active - moving all over and making my stomach contort into some pretty interesting shapes. One baby (at least one...) has hiccups quite often lately, so that's been fun to feel. The baby girl was hiccuping on our last ultrasound :)

This weekend we worked on getting more ready for the babies. Hospital bag is almost all packed (missing only my toiletries), cameras are charged an on the kitchen table, car seats are installed... I think we're ready!

What am I forgetting to do???

My next appointment is on Wednesday. Hopefully all is still going well!!

We have a (latest possible) date!

Proud big brother to-be

Juan and I had another weekly appointment yesterday. Babies and I are still doing good! We're a little over 34 weeks now - which was our first "goal" date! Our next big milestone is to make it to 36 weeks. At 36 weeks the babies will likely be able to avoid the NICU and come home with us from the hospital!

My doctor went ahead and scheduled a c-section for 38 weeks - November 9th! He doesn't really think we'll make it all the way to the 9th, but wanted to go ahead and have the date on the schedule. We're just going to keep an eye on whether the babies keep growing well and seem happy in my belly. As long as they keep doing well and I'm doing well, they'll be allowed to stay put until the 9th.

I'm doing my best to stay relaxed, comfortable and off my feet. Juan is being soooo good about cooking, cleaning and giving foot rubs :) I owe him big time! (well, I guess I am carrying his two babies... hehe)

We also chose a pediatrician and turned in our hospital pre-admission paperwork today! I'm going to get the hospital bag packed very soon - as soon as my delivery from gap.com arrives with a few essentials :)

We're getting close!!!

Baby Boom

You may remember a few months ago when I posted something about a neighbor maybe being pregnant... well, it turns out she is very pregnant :) She is due in 10 days with a little girl! Juan also found out this morning that we have another neighbor on the attached cul-de-sac that is due TODAY with a little boy! (I obviously NEVER see this other neighbor...)

So, there's about to be a little baby boom in our little slice of Austin!

10+ Pounds of Baby!

Today was our LAST appointment with our Perinatologist (the high risk doctor). We had a growth scan and he did another biophysical profile assessment. The babies are looking great! They are each right around 5 pounds. The boy is a little over 5 pounds and the girl is right at 5 pounds. Yay! I am totally feeling all 10+ pounds of baby these days...

My current 'goal' is to get to 36 weeks, or October 26th. All of the doctors seem to agree that the babies will be very big, healthy, and ready to come home with us at 36 weeks (or even earlier...). After I meet that date, my next goal will be 37 weeks.

I just can't imagine my belly getting much bigger. I'm just going to be sitting/ laying on the couch for the next few weeks. Fun fun :) I'm glad that the fall TV lineup is back...

Best Melon of the Season!

I'm now 33 weeks and 1 day - the babies are the size of honeydews!

We have our next growth scan on Friday, so we'll see if we're still actually in honeydew range, or if we've moved pass that 5.8lb mark. I'm hoping that both babies are measuring big, since they could really come any time in the next month. I want them to be big and healthy.

Today we had our second biophysical profile. The babies did great again - both scoring a perfect 8/8! The sonographer also showed us that both babies have hair on their heads! I am so amazed that they can see HAIR on an ultrasound. It was so fun. They were both moving around like crazy, but baby A (the girl) is still breech. So, it's looking like I'm going to have to have a c-section. Neither baby has turned around in several weeks.

Tomorrow Juan's coworkers are throwing us a lunchtime baby shower! It is so nice of them to do that. I'll update again after the shower tomorrow or after our Friday growth scan. :)

Nursery Progress

Juan left last Saturday to go to Dublin for a week. He NEVER goes on business trips. He found out about it a few weeks in advance. I wasn't too excited about being by myself while 32/33 weeks pregnant, but I knew it was important for him to go. I did end up having to take the dog to boarding on Wednesday - he was a little bit too stir crazy without Juan here to take him on jogs or evening walks. My wonderful friends and neighbors took good care of me! Juan's home now, so all is good... He came home with gifts for me and for the babies. Here is a sample:

Last Tuesday I had the first of my weekly doctors appointments. The babies are looking good. They did a "biophysical profile" ultrasound to take a look at how the babies are practicing their breathing, how they're moving around and all sorts of stuff like that. They both scored a perfect 8/8... not sure what that means, but a perfect score is a perfect score ;)

My doctor measured my stomach and said that I was measuring at 41 weeks. I was just 32 weeks pregnant. So, yeah, I am already measuring larger than a full term single pregnancy. He said that he was hoping I would make it to 35 weeks. At that point the babies would likely be able to avoid going to the NICU and would likely be able to come home from the hospital with us. I am still aiming for November 1st (37 weeks), but I get more and more tired and uncomfortable every day. Ugh. I have my next appointment this Tuesday, so hopefully we're all still doing well. It's hard to believe that these babies could be here in 2 weeks!

My parents and my aunt Mary came to Austin on Friday. It was really great to see Mary - it's been a really long time since I've seen her!! Too bad she was put to work while visiting... Mary and my dad put together a ton of baby swings, bouncers, strollers, and a book shelf! Thanks!!!

My mom took ownership of getting everything else organized, washed, and put away! Yay! My dining room is no longer piled 7 feet high with baby things. There are NO BOXES left and the nursery also actually looks like a nursery now!

I had great intentions of getting all this stuff done myself over the next few weeks (with Juan's help), but it was so nice to have someone swoop in and do it for me. We still have a few things to do, but our list is soooooooooooo much shorter now.

Today we went to La-Z-Boy and bought two rocker/swivel recliners (see above x 2)! They are going to be delivered next Saturday. Yay! I'm glad we found something that was in stock (otherwise we'd be waiting until Christmas for delivery). I think they'll be good for rocking the little babies in the living room. I have a feeling that with the addition of two dark brown leather recliners, the rest of our living room furniture will look a little drab :) Oh well... We'll get a new sofa eventually.

After La-Z-Boy we went over to Fuddruckers for lunch. My day was pretty good up to this point. One lady at La-Z-Boy did say something along the lines of, "don't have your baby in here... We'd have to boil water." Um. okay. I'll try not to. BUT, at Fuddruckers, after I order my burger, the cashier said, "you must be having more than one baby. I've never seen a stomach that big." REALLY? Never? Great. Up until today I was feeling pretty good about my girth. I know I'm definitely growing, but "never seen anyone with a stomach this big"?? Ugh. I was a bit deflated. She lost a little bit of credibility when she then asked if boy/girl twins could still be identical. Ummm. No. That would make for a very manly looking daughter or very feminine looking son ;) haha.
I leave you with this cute picture of my puppy :) I just found it on the camera when I was downloading the rest of these pictures. hehe. The rest of my weekend is going to be football and sleep. :)