Our family is growing again!

Pregnant! That’s me. We found out we were pregnant back in June (which seems sooo long ago now).

I started out feeling great like I did in my last pregnancy. However, the first trimester exhaustion quickly set in and so did a lot of feeling very… blah. My appetite disappeared and I had plenty of food aversions. I wasn’t getting sick, but feeling pretty nauseous, especially in the evenings. My nose was super sensitive and our new town, which normally smells wonderfully piney to me, was suddenly making my stomach turn, especially when it rained. Which it did. Practically every day for over  a month. All in all, my symptoms weren’t that bad, but definitely different than the first time.

I attribute the difference to the altitude. When we’re home now, we’re at 7,000 elevation. Every time I left our town, I felt fine, but coming home all my symptoms returned.

The second trimester has me feeling much better and more productive with a little more energy than I had in the first. My appetite is still not what I remember from last time (except for when I went back to 700 ft. elevation in St. Louis, where I was super hungry the whole time). I’m pretty bummed about it, because eating was the best part of pregnancy last time.  I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed food so much as I did then.

We decided to get prenatal care at a local birth center staffed by midwives in a cute historic and homey house. The appointments included long chats over tea. The labor room had big soaker tubs and a double bed, and felt comfortable not medical. At each appointment, they listened for baby’s heart and we always asked if there was only one, to which they either giggled or said that they thought I would be feeling bigger by now if there were two.

Last week on Friday, we went into the hospital for our 20 week ultrasound. Debbie, our tech took us back to the room with the normal chit chat. We got situated, she put the warm gel on my belly, and placed the wand. She immediately took it off and said, “This is your first ultrasound this pregnancy?”

I couldn’t see the screen like Tyler could, but we still had the same response, “Yes, are there two?!?!?”

She placed the wand on my belly again and turned the screen so we could both see the outlines of two heads. TWINS! “There’s Baby A and Baby B. You didn’t know? Get comfy, cause we’re going to be here a while.”

She proceeded to do all their measurements and make sure all their parts and organs were accounted for. They were 2 healthy babies predicted to be around .75 lbs and within a gram of each other. The whole time we were there I think we were both a little in shock. Not wanting to talk too much and disturb her while she was working (the babies were very active and making it a little tough for her), but unable to contain our excitement, shock, and random thoughts.

“Do we need to get a van???” I asked at one point.

It was rather surreal to see them both in there. 4 feet, kicking each other. One of the things I love about the ultrasound, is getting to see the movement that corresponds with what I’m feeling. Now, when I feel them moving around, I imagine them sticking their feet into each other’s ribs and not just mine. 😊

I think on some level I knew there were two. When I was asked at work what I thought I was having, my immediate response was not boy or girl, it was, “twins.” One evening I remember Tyler asking how our baby was, and I corrected him by saying, “you mean, babies…” Then, just that morning on the way to the ultrasound Tyler asked me what I thought the sex would be and my reply was, “both.”

I wasn’t entirely correct. We found out pretty early in the appointment that Baby A is a girl, and about an hour later we found out that Baby B is also a girl.  They each have their own sac and placenta, known as di/di twins, which our research tells us most likely means they are fraternal, but there is still a 25-30%  possibility of them being identical.

Lying there with thoughts of two babies racing through my head, I suddenly felt very behind. To be honest, the second pregnancy was not as exciting as the first. Sure, we were over the moon to be having another kid, but the pregnancy itself was a little bit been-there done-that. We did so much research and reading last time. We already have all the gear and supplies. There wasn’t that much to DO for this pregnancy. But BAM, suddenly we had so many questions we needed answered. Twins are a different ballgame (and I try not to think about how expensive the tickets are). 20 weeks is supposed to be halfway, but with a twin pregnancy we’re more than likely more than halfway.

We went home to tell Hazel. I whispered it in her ear so she could announce it to Erin who was staying with us. Tyler was taking a video hoping to get a cute announcement to send to the family too. Although, she got a big grin when I told her there were two babies, she refused to say it out loud. Then she refused to say the word “twins” for the next few days. She might have been in denial. Ha! But she has come around, and sometimes asks to look at my belly, puts her hands on it and asks if they’re moving. She knows there are two sisters in there for her, and I think she’s getting excited.

It’s been fun spilling the beans to people. Everyone is so shocked! What’s not fun, is now having to start back at square one with all our planning. Bye bye birth center, they don’t do twins. Hello, OB shopping, hospital tours, and school waiting lists. Ugh!

So it’s about time I start up this ole’ blog again and keep track of the babies’ pregnancy like I did with Hazel’s. A quick google image search of “twin pregnancy belly” will give you a glimpse of the terrifying magnitude of the situation to come. 😉

{  The day we found out  }

{  Two Heads!!!  }

How far along? 20 Weeks

How much weight have you gained?  10 pounds  

          

Any cravings? Not lately, but I have been eating a lot of donuts since I found out there were two babies. Not really a craving, more like a coping mechanism?

What are you wearing? No more normal pants. It’s leggings and maternity pants from here on out. I am pretty big already, measuring 26 weeks for a singleton pregnancy, so not a lot is fitting.

How are you feeling? Symptoms? Good! My main symptoms are getting tired more quickly, and moving slow. A little low back pain. I am starting to get uncomfortable when I sit for too long, or move too quickly.

Stretch marks? Not yet, but I feel like they will be inevitable with this pregnancy.

Belly button in or out? Outish already. And has been for a few weeks.

Sleep? Sleep has been okay so far, but I’m starting to get uncomfortable and frequently waking up on my back and having to change positions. I’ve been debating a giant pregnancy pillow this time around, but can’t decide if I should go for it or not.

Best moment this week: Tyler and I got to get away over the weekend for our anniversary while Erin hung out with Hazel. It gave us time to relax and digest the fact that we are soon to be a family of five.

Worst moment this week:  It’s been rather stressful! I suddenly feel behind in my pregnancy and a little overwhelmed by it.

Miss anything? Down time. We’ve had tons of fun stuff going on this summer and it’s been really exciting, but it has also been exhausting. I am ready to do some hibernating to just relax and get organized.

Movement? Quite a bit of movement! I imagine them in there kicking each other just like they were when we got our ultrasound.

Excited for anything? Very excited. This is a new adventure again, and I always hear how cool it is to witness the relationship of twins.

How’s dad-to-be? Also very excited! He’s bought some books and doing twin research. Planning how to get three car seats to fit nicely in our car.

{  Celebrating 4 years of marriage with a Sedona sunset  }

Eeeeeeeeeeeeek!!

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