Mom on Mother's day

I became a mom on Mother's day at 34 weeks. They were tiny - 3 lbs 2 ounces and 3 lbs 10 ounces but they did not have any other serious problems. They decided to come by different routes - one vaginal and one had to be delivered by c-section. Both the babies are doing fine and came home from the hospital in one week. We had our first visit with their pediatrician yesterday and the babies now weigh 3 lbs 13 ounces and 4 lbs 4 ounces. We are totally sleep-deprived now :) but the babies are doing great. I will update more later.

34 weeks OB appointment

I am 34 weeks today. I never thought I will make it so far. I had my OB appointment and my OB was also amazed. She also said that when I was hospitalized at 27 weeks, she never thought I will be still pregnant at 34 weeks. Of course, there is still the blood pressure problem but no preeclampsia so far. I had the tests done twice last week and will again have to do it this week. Life is full of doctors appointments and NSTs (3 days a week) but still it is better than having to stay in the hospital or delivering the babies early. I am not even in bedrest though I am not doing much at home - only sitting and eating and sleeping. My OB told me that from now on, the babies do not need steroids for lung maturity. I have a growth scan next Tuesday and another appt with the OB on Wednesday. She will check my cervix next week and depending on the state of my cervix and the growth ultrasound, we will decide on a date for induction unless something happens earlier. But probably it will be 37 weeks maximum. In case the babies are born after 36 weeks, they might not even have to spend time in the hospital.
So 36 weeks is my next goal but I am very, very happy to have made it so far.

33weeks 1 day

Today I am 33 weeks 1 day pregnant. Somehow my ticker is in a different time zone and it shows 33 weeks 2 days and I do not know how to change it. Anyways, I went for my NST on Tuesday and my bp was borderline and the babies were fine - so I did not have to go to Labor and Delivery. Then I had my growth scan. The growth of the babies have slowed down - Baby A is 3 lbs 10 oz (18th percentile) and Baby B is 4 lbs (30th percentile). So the doctors doing the ultrasound recommended I schedule another grown scan in 2 weeks which will help in determining when I should deliver. They also said identical twins are delivered before fraternal twins; so it will be maximum 3-4 weeks. I am hoping Baby A will also be 4 lbs before being born. Tomorrow I go for another NST. I also did another 24 hr urine collection and blood tests on Tuesday. I was waiting for phone calls these two days but there were none. I assume no news is good news as usually they call if there is a problem.

My mom is arriving from India tomorrow afternoon and I am very very happy (My family is from India). She will stay till mid of August. It is very nice of her as she is still working and she has a position with lot of responsibility and it is difficult for her to take time off. I am counting the hours before she lands here.

Last prenatal class and baby shower

Last weekend was very busy. The twin mom's club of which I am a member hosted its garage sale on Saturday. I went and picked up a Baby Trend Double Snap n Go stroller and some other stuff. We went for our last prenatal class "Newborn Care 101" on Saturday afternoon. Then yesterday some of my friends hosted a babyshower for me. Our hubby was involved but they did not tell me about it. I had guessed it though; so it was not really a surprise :). There were lots of people - more than 50. The friends in whose house the baby shower took place just had their second child and she is only 2 months old. So it was really great of them to put in all the effort. I was just sitting in one place the whole time though.

I have my NST and ultrasound on Tuesday. Will update about what happens.

32 weeks and Belly Pics

I am 32 weeks 2 days today. Yesterday I went for my NST and then to my OB clinic. My pressure came high again, but not as high as the previous time. Thanks Evergreen for your suggestions. Baby A was so active that the nurses doing the NST said she is doing aerobic exercise. Then I went for my OB appointment. My sugar levels seem to have stabilized. So she did not increase my insulin levels this time. She did not send me to the hospital this time but she consulted the attending MFM and the plan is to have me do another 24 hour urine and blood tests. Also, from next time I go for NSTs twice a week. I have my growth ultrasound scheduled for next week. However, my OB had told me 24, 28 and 32 weeks are the milestones to reach and I have reached 32 weeks. Yay! I hope that the babies stay inside as long as possible but 32 weeks is great and my hospital has the fifth best NICU in US (the reason I chose this hospital instead of the one closest to our home). I feel much more confident and relaxed now.

I did not post any belly pics before. Here are my 23 weeks and 32 weeks belly pics. You can see a significant size difference :)

Long overdue

I know I have not updated for a long time. Anyways, the last few weeks were a little challenging. I have "white coat syndrome" which means my blood pressure becomes high at doctor's clinics. However, all throughout the pregnancy it was pretty good 100/60 , 110/70 and so on. Well, I went for my dietitian when I was 27 weeks and the nurse checked my bp. It was high - 140/90... she checked thrice and it was around the same. So I was sent to labor and delivery in the hospital which is opposite the clinic. My bp was kind of high there (though it was coming down ) and my heart was racing. They took a lot of blood for various tests and then started me on the 24 hour urine sample. I was admitted to the hospital and put on IV because they thought my heartrate was high because of dehydration. It was on a Friday and on Saturday, a MFM doc came and told me they might have to give steroids to mature the babies' lungs and brains. I was very worried; all I could think that I am only 27 weeks. I told them I tend to get high bp if anxious but they did not believe me. They had a cardiologist come and check me out and they took an EKG. The EKG and all the blood test results came back normal. Finally, on Saturday night the 24 hour urine test results came back and there was no protein in the urine. So I was discharged.

The following Wednesday I had an appointment with my OB and as usual my bp was high. My ob told me to relax at home and monitor my bp and start Non Stress Tests from 30 weeks.

So last week, I went for my NST which was all good. Then I went to the OB clinic and my bp was very high. So my doc sent me to the hospital once more. At the hospital they again took my blood, monitored my bp and heart rate. My bp was kind of okay but heart was racing - like 140. And I forgot to mention I had also done an echo in between which had come back fine. Anyways, they let me come home because they thought this might be due to anxiousness. I was supposed to do a 24 hour urine collection at home and take it back. I took the sample on Friday night but somehow the lab people lost it. Anyways, they told me not to bother about the urine sample as I go back again this Wednesday for another NST. But from now on, I am prepared to stay in the hospital any time. In fact, I packed my hospital bag today. I am hoping nothing happens before 32 weeks... but I will be 31 weeks by wednesday so it is much better than last time.

Fetal echo

I had my fetal echo appointment yesterday. It was at the hospital and my hubby accompanied me for the appointment. It was basically an ultrasound kind of thing. I did not understand what they were trying to see. But Looked like my uterus has gone upto my chest. I wonder whether my stomach is :). Both the babies are on the right side though. One is up and one is down. Baby B (the up baby) was keeping on moving and the ultrasound technician was having a hard time with her. They were kicking each other yesterday. Usually their favorite position is head to head - as if they are talking to each other. It took about an hour to complete the whole procedure. Then the doctor came in and told us everything looks fine. There might be small defects the test might have missed but nothing major. I do not need any repeat appointments. That was a big relief.

It was sad to sit in the waiting room though. They were so many kids coming in for the tests.

I am feeling the babies move quite a lot nowadays. Sadly for my husband, whenever he tries to feel them move, they stop. I will be 22 weeks tomorrow and now I am starting to show.

20 weeks

I cannot believe I am already 20 weeks pregnant. Reached the half-way mark for a singleton pregnancy, of course mine will be earlier. As I am having monochorionic diamnionic twins (translation: one placenta but two amniotic sacs) I have ultrasounds every two weeks to make sure there is no sign of Twin-to-twin Transfusion syndrome. Add nutritionist, doctor and acupuncturist appointments to that, my life has become pretty busy. I also have a fetal echo scheduled for Feb 9 which is making me a little nervous but I hope everything will be okay.

So the 17th week ultrasound revealed that I am having girls :) and the 19th week ultrasound confirmed that. They are growing according to schedule and everything seems fine with them so far. I have been very busy with work till now and have not done any preparation for the babies till now. I just registered for some classes starting from March. So have to start looking for cribs, minivan and other stuff soon.

Happy New Year 2009

I am been a terrible blogger. I have not updated my blog for ages. Anyways, wishing everyone a very happy 2009. Nity and Leigh got their BFP recently - I am very very happy for them. Hope everyone else gets their wishes fulfilled this year.

About me, it is hard to believe I am already in my 2nd trimester. In fact, tomorrow is the first day of my fifth month. I am still nauseous (who said nausea goes away after first trimester) and recently starting getting heartburn. I am taking insulin four times a day now and so my day is pretty much filled with taking insulin, doing blood tests, walking after breakfast, lunch and dinner and having something to eat every two hours. I think God is preparing me for life with twins :).

Remember my initial post about a friend who conceived her second child in the first month? Well I came to know that her sister had fertility problems. She had four IVFs but had miscarriages every time. Finally, she had to take the help of a surrogate mother. Her son is now more than one year old.

Also, if anyone who reads this blog has twins, I would love to hear any tips/suggestions on taking care of twins....