Doctor’s Update

After last week’s hospital visit I was sure I would see some progress at my next doctor’s appointment, but I am still not dilated or effaced. My doctor told me that some women never dilate until delivery day so I should not be discouraged. These babies are growing like weeds now. Since my appointment last week I gained two more pounds and I measured 42 weeks! How much more can my belly stretch!?

Usually my doctor will not give me an answer when I ask how much longer he thinks it will be, however, at this appointment he thought I would make it a couple of more weeks. Twin pregnancies reach full term sooner (37 weeks) and my body is getting lots of practice contracting. In fact, he prescribed me a medication that will stop contractions if it is not true labor. I am supposed to take it when contractions are coming every 5 minutes. Last night I had to take one. It stopped the contractions and helped me get some sleep. The doctor assured me that this medicine will not stop true labor. It is the same medication as the shot I got at the hospital in a pill form.

On Monday we will get another ultrasound to make sure the babies are still growing at the same rate and to check their amniotic fluid levels. That will most likely be the last ultrasound. I am learning lots of lessons in patience and perseverance as I reach the end of this pregnancy! I know that the best thing is for them to stay put for now, but it is really getting hard!

False Labor: Week 35

Saturday afternoon I started having contractions around 3:30. Brian started timing them and they were coming every 10 min. and continued for about 2 hours. My doctor told me this is the warning sign I should look for, but I was not convinced that this was the real thing. I called the doctor’s weekend answering service and they said to go to the hospital. Brian and I had already packed my hospital bag about an hour into the contractions so we were ready. Well, I take that back… I am not sure if one is ever really ready when the big day comes. Anyway, we headed off to the hospital. We called my mom who was excited because the 24th is also her birthday. We also called Brian’s family. We decided not to call anyone else until we knew for sure if this was it.



We checked in the hospital triage and they started monitoring. The monitor showed some fairly strong contractions that were coming 8-10 minutes apart. Both babies’ heart rates were strong and indicated no fetal distress. My doctor was not on call this weekend, so his partner came in to check me out. All this work my uterus was doing did not cause me to dilate at all! Surprised and feeling a little foolish for coming all the way to the hospital for false labor I waited for the doctor to tell us what all this meant. The doctor and nurses explained that there is no way to know when it is real or not, but instead of looking for contractions 10 minutes apart I should now look for contractions that are 3-5 minutes apart. Also, I should not wait too long to come to the hospital because they do not want my labor to advance too much before the c-section.

They checked me for dehydration and a urinary tract infection since these can both cause your uterus to contract. I was a little dehydrated. After about an hour of monitoring, the contractions were not stopping so the doctor decided to give me a shot of terbutaline. The shot decreased the contractions fairly quickly. We were discharged after a few hours on monitoring.



I realized from this experience that I was not as ready as I thought I was. At 35 weeks I worried the babies would be too small and need assistance breathing. The doctor said they generally do not try to stop labor for twins after 34 weeks, but I would still like them to stay put for at least another week. I go back to the doctor for my weekly checkup on Tues. It is so stressful waiting for labor!

On a positive note, Brian has been so sweet through all this. Right now he is busy “nesting”! He scrubbed baseboards in the kitchen, and checked all my obsessive lists to make sure we have all the baby business taken care of. He also cooks, and tends to regular chores in the house and in the yard. I am so lucky he does all of this without making me feel bad. My babies are so lucky to have such a caring father.

My Sweet Baby Girls: Week 34 Dr. Appointment

The babies have grown quite a bit since the last ultrasound. I have also grown a lot in the last week! Since I am going once a week it was amazing to see that I had gained 4 pounds in one week and went from measuring 36 weeks pregnant to 39 weeks! I knew my clothes were getting tighter. My doctor was very happy with all this growth. The babies are really doing well. The ultrasound showed they have moved into position, both head down. Baby A has dropped and baby B sits much higher than her sister. When you see the ultrasound pictures you will notice that baby A has her face smooched against my uterine wall. Brian said in the middle of the ultrasound, “Why is her nose so big?” I have to admit I was thinking that too. Her nose did not look like that in any other pictures. She is just really far down in my pelvis and is running out of room. My doctor said this is why I feel so much pressure and why my hip hurts so badly. The funny thing is he said she will drop even more! Many of their measurements showed that they were in the 77th percentile in their growth. Baby A’s estimated weight was 4 pounds 8 ounces and Baby B’s estimated weight was 4 pounds 6 ounces. Yes, folks that is right! I am carrying around 9 pounds of baby! The doctor and ultrasound tech said to expect them to gain about ½ a pound per week at this point. They were also practicing breathing during the ultrasound. You can see their diaphragm contract and their abdomens move in a breathing pattern. It’s amazing! The tech told us this is one sign they look for when examining fetal maturity.

Baby B was much more cooperative during this visit. We saw her face a lot and she smiled at us. Looks like her cheeks are filling out quite a bit.










Again, Baby A had her face smooched against the uterine wall. I laugh every time I think of Brian’s response to this picture.





I think they are both adorable. My next appointment is on Tues. next week. We will have another ultrasound in two weeks. I did explain to the doctor that I did not think I would make it to the c-section date on Nov. 23. He said he would be thrilled if I make it two more weeks.

34 Weeks

I am so happy to finally make it to 34 weeks. If the babies were born now their risks for problems would be minimal! This is good because I am ready! We had a busy week last week. I was out and about a lot with errands, a doctor’s appointment, church, and a shower from my work. My friend Julie also came to set up the curtains she made for the babies’ room. In addition, there were a couple of days were I had strong contractions for a few hours that ranged from 20-30 minutes apart. I am anxious to see if I am dilated or effaced at the next appointment. The doctor told me last week as long as contractions are not 10 minutes apart everything is okay. So I guess this is just the so-called “false labor”. My hip pain that was almost non-existent for the past couple of weeks came back worse than ever! I do not know how people live with sciatic nerve pain. It is difficult to even walk. I have read that it has a lot to do with the position of the baby. Maybe they will move around to a less painful position soon.

Here are some pictures from this week.

Me and my friend, Ashley, at our double shower. She is being induced this week!

This is a cool gift that Ashley and I got at our shower! It folds up like a camping chair and toys attache to all the hooks.

The beautiful curtains my friend, Julie, made for the nursery.

Here are the pillows that Julie made. One side is the paisley pattern and the other side is the stripes pattern.

34 week picture

I thought this picture was cute of Brian, Chief, and Bailey relaxing!

You will all have to ignore my repeats of clothing. Not much fits at this point, and I refuse to buy more maternity clothes. I can't wait to wear my normal clothes again!

I have a doctor's appointment with an ultrasound tomorrow afternoon! Can't wait to see the girls!

Week 33 Dr. Appointment

The doctor's appointment went well today. Both babies are doing fine, blood pressure is good, and all the other things they look at were good. Baby A's heart rate was 152 and Baby B's heart rate was 172. My appointments were moved to once a week since I am still having irregular contractions. The doctor would like me to make it at least two more weeks. I will have an ultrasound on Tues. to check the babies' growth. I still measure 36 weeks (not sure how that is possible since I feel so much bigger). I can't wait to see how much they weigh next week!

Week 33: Then and Now!

I thought it would be fun to show you a picture of me at 7 weeks pregnant and a current picture at 33 weeks pregnant. I cannot believe how big I am! The girls should weigh about 4 pounds each now. I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow. This is only a checkup. We won’t have another ultrasound for two weeks. I have had more contractions, but nothing regular. I added a pregnancy ticker to this page that counts down the days to the c-section. Brian and I have picked dates we think the twins will come. We based our dates on the way I am growing, projected weights of the babies, and statistics of when twins deliver. Most twins come by 38 weeks. 50% come by 36 weeks. So based on all that Brian picked Nov. 9 and I picked Nov. 13. He picked the end of week 36 and I picked the end of week 37. I still cannot imagine making it to the c-section date, which is week 39!

Brian has also resorted to calling me torpedo belly! After a couple of times I explained to him that was not very nice. Every time I leave the house now strangers cannot help but say things to me. I believe that I may have overreacted to a couple of these curious strangers. Here's an example: We went to grocery store, as we walked through the check out line Brian went in before me to unload the groceries, as I followed the cashier looked straight at my belly with wide eyes and said, "Oh my God, you are huge!" I tried to muster a smile, however, I am sure it looked very fake. Brian saved me and said, "That's what happens when you are carrying twins."

This is me at week 7 in Jamaica at a friend's wedding.

Here I am now at week 33!

(Chief likes to walk really close to me now. I think he is worried I might topple over!)

Here is the swing Brian and I bought this weekend. My sister & brother-in-law gave us a good tip and told us to buy stuff that had a lot of things to keep the baby entertained, and not just to go with stuff that is cute. This swing has lots of different music, nature sounds, several rocking motions, 3 positions, and a mirror at the top where the mobile is located. I hope it keeps at least one baby entertained. We decided to buy one swing, and see how they like it before we purchase two.



I should have another quick update tomorrow after my doctor’s appointment.

Week 32

If your read last week’s blog then you know my due date was changed from Nov. 28 to Dec. 4. Since the doctor scheduled a c-section for Nov. 23 I am going to stick with my Nov. 28 due date and call this week 32.

Yesterday afternoon Brian and I went to a movie, and I started to have contractions. By the time we got home they were 20-30 minutes apart and this lasted for about 2 more hours. I called the doctor this morning and they said if it happened again to call back. I felt fine until around 10:30 and the contractions started again. They were still spaced far apart, but the doctor wanted me to come in anyway. The doctor ran a test and gave me a physical exam. I was not dilated and the test they gave me was negative for preterm labor.

I asked several questions to help me understand if I was overreacting. The doctor said that since I measure close to a full term pregnancy that this type of thing was normal, and if the contractions get close to 10 minutes apart then it would be a reason to worry. Evidently a women’s body does not know that it is carrying two babies so it prepares for labor the same as it would for a single baby. Hopefully, these babies will stay where they are until they are closer to full term (37 weeks). As mentioned in the last blog, the doctor would not try to stop labor if I am 35 weeks or beyond.