babies in the ultrasound photos

i may not have posted photos from the ultrasound as of late, but it's because it's really hard to get a clear image of one or both of the babies...

IN FACT, we cannot get both of them in a single shot anymore!  isn't that wild?  that is because they are TOO BIG!  LOL

at 26 weeks (i'm almost 27- my age! lol), they are the size of the ENGLISH HOTHOUSE CUCUMBERS at 14 inches long!  wow!!!  i'm always fascinated with how long these are in the store!  also they weigh about 1lb., 11 oz...!!!

and, here's what a baby looks like at 26 weeks... in my case, i have two in there- both flip flopped!  i do know that A is in correct position, but B is breech as of our last visit (which, of course, i need to update on here!)!

monthly nurse's advice

every month, the same nurse from cigna, carol, calls me for the healthy babies' program that i enrolled in my first trimester.  whenever she calls, she gives the BEST advice/tips.  this time was none other.

so, on wed., 8/18, she called, and advised me:

- kiwis have fabulous potassium in them (an alternative to bananas).
- put 1t of powdered milk in my smoothie for protein.
- tell the tech upfront that we'd like to be updated as the u/s proceeds since we aren't experienced in that area.
- if i continue to have "silver confetti" visions (more on that later), then let the dr. know... although, i was hydrated, fed, and feeling quite strong.  don't know how it happened twice, but it did.

she really goes to battle for me and finds out about my insurance plan in case i have questions or the dr. do... it's helpful to have someone on my side who understands the scientific part of it and the patient part. :)

a soapbox at 18 weeks

tomorrow, we go for our 21-week ultrasound ("u/s" for danielle :)). our previous appointment was very different than any other.

they did the full-anatomy screening on both babies.  imagine having an ultrasound for an hour and a half.  yup, roughly 45 minutes each baby.  the worst part is that the tech was one whom we hadn't had before, and she was quite UNpleasant.  now, i go to u/s every two weeks, and yes, i have questions, AND i have the right to ask any question i want.  for heaven's sake, i have TWO BABIES in my womb!!!  apparently, she did NOT like that and could not multi-task... do her job and answer my questions whenever i asked them.  she got beyond annoyed, and i could tell by her facial expressions, voice, mood, tone, and body language.  for instance, i asked, are we going to be able to compare the fluid around both babies once both babies' screenings were complete?  (for twin-to-twin transfusion which they told us about at our last appointment)  she became frustrated and upset when i asked that and told me that we weren't at THAT point yet in the u/s.  i knew that we weren't at that point, but i was setting the foundation for which i wanted her to point out to me later.  that was only the beginning...

[note: it's UNUSUAL to carry multiples... especially WHEN they're unexpected joys like ours!   it's hard to explain, except i'm sure any woman who has experienced pregnancy has felt this newfound desire to protect everything about the pregnancy/baby.  to know everything, pay attention to everything because it is a RIGHT.   it's a necessity.

well, just imagine your first, you're carrying double, and instead of showing concern for one, you're now responsible for two.  that's where i am.  it's this overwhelmingly feeling of protection, responsibility to my babies, my husband, my family, and especially God.  throw some (sarcasm to it's highest degree) high-risk, 70 mg lovenox injections, twin-to-twin transfusion possibilities in there, and voila!  it WOULD be UNREALISTIC to not be REALISTIC about the situation and concerns that any new mother may have.  we have to prepare for anything and everything.  any answers are appreciated and encouraged.]

normally, we have the most awesome tech... this younger woman (probably late 30's)... she's great about answering questions, providing feedback, multi-tasking, and the face of professionalism!!!  for some reason, we didn't get her this time, which obviously wasn't the best scenario.

for the rest of the visit, she at least reassured us that, once again (for the third time "finding out") that we're having girls.  inside i was LOL!!!  also, she said that the babies are measuring right on schedule for how far along i am.... it's so weird that i have two little babies in there, and every time we go to an ultrasound, i'm genuinely shocked that they're still there.  it's still strange to admit, experience, and feel that i am even pregnant.  i mean, a year ago, i would have laughed if this is where you told me i'd be.... just because i was so sick and almost passing through to the other side... i honestly didn't think there was MUCH possibility in ever getting pregnant after what i went through.  i went through so much medically.

when we finally saw the dr. (who is my fav. by the way, and i hope he delivers my babies since he is well-renowned across the U.S. for multiples), he answered my few questions.  i asked if it's okay to be around my pups (yes), how to solve my problem with prenatals (take two flinstones), if my tailbone's stretching is common (yes, i'm further along than singleton pregnancies since i'm carrying twins), how i deal with heartburn (tum'... 1 every 4-6 hours), and is it normal that i'm having a difficult time coughing/breathing deeply (yes)?

for our 21-week appointment, we are going to the downtown office since it's closer to my work.  since we see a different dr. each visit, it doesn't really matter which location we visit.  we're just praying for healthy baby girls!!! :)

supplements to alleviate leg cramping

i'm 20 weeks.  my chief complaint is leg cramping.   yes, i eat a banana a day in my smoothie.  i drink a lot of water, but it seems to not be helping.  still, i'm awoken several times in the night with HORRIBLE pains similar to my DVT, and i went to sprout's to see if there was any potassium supplement that i could take to help my situation.

the lady told me that actually it was a lack of magnesium which was probably the root of my leg cramping. who would have thought?!  i didn't even know where you find magnesium... meaning, in what food?  well, in LOTS of food!!!  it's in nuts, seeds, whole grains, veggies, beans, etc... AND, she also told me that the root of a lot of diseases, scientists have found, were traced back to a lack of magnesium.... apparently, magnesium is needed by some 300 parts in your body... wowsers!!!  amongst many things, it helps out asthma, blood clotting, leg cramping, allergies, muscle weakness, ADHD (i have most of that right now, especially ADHD my whole life)!!!  here's more information.  AMAZING!!!  i even read that a magnesium deficiency can lead to death due to heart failure!!!

anyway, through more reading, i found that a lack of calcium and potassium also can inflict leg cramping.  not to mention dehydration.  i did pick up a potassium/magnesium supplement.  over the counter, the max amount that they can sell of potassium is 99mg, so my supplement has that in it and 300mg of magnesium.

at my next ultrasound, i will double check with my dr. if it's allright that i'm now taking this supplement. :)

here's Baby Center's information/tips about leg cramping.

LOVE this fruit!

the babies are now the size of mangos at 19 weeks!  how cool is that!!!

i know that i haven't posted in awhile, but i have several coming this way, so be prepared to read. :)

also, nice trick my friend showed me with mangos- instead of PEELING (like smarty pants here used to do), CUT off the peel.  duh, right?  and, a family friend showed me one time that she had sliced up mango slices, put them in the freezer in a tupperware container, AND then pulled them out for snacks!  frozen mango slices!  brilliant.

twins? identical? whaaaat?

when we first found out that we were pregnant, we had no idea what identical meant, and it's not what you think since we've been asked this question many times....  here's how we found out:

at six weeks (my second ultrasound at the high-risk specialist office), i was really supposed to be eight weeks.  immediately, she measured the baby and stated that we were only six weeks.  i was shocked, and didn't really understand.  so, i was pushed back two weeks.

THEN, she started squinting with her eyes, furrowing her eyebrows....  straight away, i asked her if something was wrong.  "no, nothing's wrong... it's just that... i think i see... two."  

as soon as she said that, i knew there were twins.  i turned to gab on my left, and his smile was so wide, and he was laughing so hard!  i was smiling so wide... so proud.  see, we always joked around that we'd have twins since his paternal grandma was one (identical- will explain later), AND had identical twin siblings (will explain later)!!!  i, like anyone, thought it ran in the fam, and that gab was due to have twins....

then, she said, "this sometimes happens... the baby's reflection looks like a second baby is there.  very normal.  we have to do a different ultrasound now."  

but, seriously, TWINS?!  i just smiled, and we had to do the more-thorough ultrasound (do i have to name it?).  of course, we were more intrigued at this second ultrasound for two reasons- the previous ultrasound (apr. 29, turns out i was just a few weeks then) was a little sac with a black little pea in it AND we wanted to know if there were twins!

"yes, they are twins... one placenta... identical twins."

WAIT, IDENTICAL?!  my head was so foggy and shocked at this point that i asked (you might find this a silly question, but seriously when you get the same information- let's see how you react!, AND plus- others have asked me the same question!)...

can it be a boy and girl?  (wouldn't that be perfect?!)

"no, two boys or two girls."

OH BOY... so it runs in my husband's family, he has identicals on his side, i told her.

"no, sorry to say, but... this is all you.  your egg split into two.  identical twins are not hereditary, non-genetic... they just happen in life.  no explanation."

poor gab... he thought it was his genes. ;)  so, what baffles me especially is HOW IN THE WORLD did his grandma have an identical twin ALONG with identical twin sisters?!  seriously, what are the chances of THAT?!  (stats later, please)

when we did see the dr. after that, he told us that i was already high-risk as is (more later), BUT they basically were going to take over my care and deliver these babies because i was even more high-risk with twins... identical twins.  he said that his only concern was that both babies in their own sacs needed to be separated by a membrane in the placenta.  otherwise, there's a higher mortality and a higher risk of bedrest.

two weeks go by... completely concerned, stressed, and praying for these babies... we go to our next appt., and THANK GOD- there's the membrane we needed!!!  woo hoo!  fantastic news!