18 weeks!

Wow it feels like I just updated...because I did! ;)

Nothing new to report. We had a great Thanksgiving with our family and had lots of good food. I had turkey with gravy, sweet potato casserole, corn casserole, stuffing, homemade rolls, green been casserole, mashed potatoes, and some truffle pie for dessert. Probably some other things I cant remember as well. We have some family friends in town from Amsterdam so it was nice visiting with them. They brought lots of chocolates and Belgian treats, and we snacked on them before dinner. Yesterday was Chris' little brother's birthday and he turned 16. So we are all going out to eat tonight...at the Mall of America...on Black Friday! It should be crazy!

I got up at 5am and went to Target this morning. There was a line all the way down the front of the building and around the side. It was crazy! I wasnt even there to get any of the 'special deals' that everyone else was after, except for the Nintendo DS with new Super Mario Brothers game, for Ian for his birthday. I got all my shopping done this morning! But of course my back hurts now so I am relaxing with my feet up until we go to dinner tonight.

Here's what the babies are up to this week:

• Vernix (a white cheese-like protective material) forms on baby's skin with the lanugo (soft, lightly pigmented hair covering the body and limbs); both serving to protect your baby's skin during the months in water.
• Your placenta continues to grow and nourish the baby. Don't forget those prenatal vitamins!
• Tiny air sacs called alveoli begin to form in lungs. He'll be putting these lungs to good use in just a few months!
• Her vocal chords are formed. She goes through the motions of crying but without air she doesn't make a sound.
• Features of baby's heart, including ventricles and chambers, should be visible during an ultrasound.
• Your baby measures about 5.59 inches (14.2cm) this week and weighs about 6.7 ounces (190gm).

And here is my fabulous belly:

17 weeks!

Here we are at 17 weeks! Well I am technically closer to 18 weeks now since I didn't get to update on Friday. But thats ok. :)

We visited some relatives that we haven't seen in years and that was very nice. I got to tell everyone about the surrogacy and they were all very very supportive and asked lots of questions. I am so lucky that nobody has said anything negative to me about being a surrogate.

I'm feeling good these days besides the back pain I've mentioned previously. It only bothers me when I've been on my feet for any extended amount of time though. Other than that, I feel wonderful!

Here's what's going on with the twinkies at 17 weeks:

• By week 17, baby weighs about 4.97 ounces (140gm) and is 5.12 inches (13cm) long.
• He or she has a much more normal "human" appearance now.
• She holds her head more erect and her body and limbs are longer in proportion to her head.
• Pads are forming on his tiny fingertips and toes. Soon those individual swirls and whorls will be apparent.
• Her eyes are looking forward now, but they are still firmly closed.
• Meconium (composed of products of cell loss, digestive secretion and swallowed amniotic fluid), is accumulating in the bowel. This black gooey substance will become baby's first poop!
• The umbilical cord is growing thicker and stronger and continues to rush blood and nutrients to your growing baby.
• If your child is male the prostate begins to develop.
• Her skeleton is transforming from cartilage to bone. The bones remain flexible to make the journey through the birth canal easier.

So I am just about halfway through now, considering most twins are born around 36 weeks. It seems like it has gone by pretty quickly so far, but I know it will be crawling by towards the end. I bet it feels like an eternity for M&B already! At least the second half will be full of shopping and preparing, for them though.

Well, I will update again on Friday. It's only a few days away, and then I'll be 18 weeks!!

Hello!

Sorry to leave you hanging! We were visiting some relatives who dont have internet! Can you believe it? I could check my email from a cell phone, but couldn't post on here.



I am 17 weeks and feeling great...getting bigger every day. I will give a good update tomorrow once I've had some good sleep!

Maternity Clothes

Well I did it. I finally broke down and bought some maternity clothes. But I wasnt happy about it! lol

I got 2 pairs of pants and 6 tops at Motherhood Maternity. My problem is that nobody has maternity clothes in styles I like. I dont need dressy things and I dont want frumpy t-shirts. Does anyone make cute casual maternity clothes for women who want to retain some sense of style while pregnant? I LOVE the clothes on http://www.apeainthepod.com but frankly, those clothes are not in my budget. Why does the cute stuff have to cost $195 for a SHIRT?

Someone needs to design some cute, budget friendly maternity clothes for hip women. I think there's a huge market for it!

I used the belly expander when I tried the clothes on, and what's funny is that it only gave me a glimpse of how big I will be when I'm about 28 weeks along. They dont have a belly pillow big enough to show you what a twin belly will look like. So I just might end up needing bigger clothes down the line. Or I might just hibernate in my house, wearing PJs all the time so I dont have to worry about it. haha

16 weeks!

Here's whats going on with the babies at 16 weeks! Look, twins!

• Fat begins to form underneath skin, providing baby with insulation for the coming months.
• Did you know that both baby and placenta are now about the same size?
• Your little one has reached 4.57 inches (11.6cm) and approximately 3.53 ounces (100gm).
• His head and neck are held straighter now.
• This is a week of "mights!" You might hear the tiny thumps of his heartbeat with an external monitor now.
• The genitals are developed sufficiently that an experienced sonographer might be able to determine if your baby is a boy or a girl.
• Her heart is pumping as much as 6 gallons of blood a day and beats at a rate about double your heart rate.
• If you could take a peek inside, you would witness your child's reflexes in action! (Sucking, swallowing and blinking are now evident.) She is probably even hiccuping even though you don't feel it yet!
• Your baby has learned to breathe! This is apparent from the regular movements of his chest. Isn't it amazing that he is able to breathe "underwater," inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid? These actions help the lungs to develop and grow.

For some reason 16 weeks feels like such a milestone to me. Maybe because it signals "4 months" or maybe because its just a few weeks away from the halfway point. I'm not sure...it just feels so neat to be 16 weeks along right now. I guess technically I am almost at the halfway point anyways since I know I wont go to 40 weeks!

I am feeling great. I mean it...really really great. I'm just barely still able to sleep on my stomach, but with one leg hiked up to roll me a little bit to the side. Pretty soon it wont be possible at all! I will definitely have to buy a pregnancy pillow to curl up around so I can sleep comfortably. I've also heard about something called the Belly Bra which is a tanktop/support garment that has an elastic band built in to help lift your belly. It takes the pressure off of your lower back. I wanted one when I was pregnant with Quinn, but I think this time it will be a necessity.

I already have pregnant posture, too. I dont think I am waddling yet though. Whenever I get up from the couch I have to brace myself and get up carefully, otherwise it feels like I'm pulling a muscle in my abdomen. Chris thinks its funny that I'm having to do it already.

Here's my new belly picture. I think I look smaller than I did 2 weeks ago, but I think its all in the posture. I even wore the same shirt for comparison.

So everything is going great! I did have a little bit of a freakout due to some bleeding, but it ended up being Chris' fault, and very common...so I'll leave it at that. ;) The bleeding didnt last long at all, and my doctor told me what signs to watch out for that would mean I would need to come in and be seen...such as clots, cramping, or contractions. But I've had none of that, and I feel great so there's nothing to worry about.

Can you believe it's getting so close to Thanksgiving already? I know I've got a lot to be thankful about this year and I cant wait to spend the day with my family. :)

Appointment

I had a doctor's appointment today and everything is great! I have gained a total of 10 pounds (2 pounds in the first trimester, and the other 8 in the past 4 weeks!). I think I'd be panicking if I were only carrying one baby, but since I'm carrying twins I'm doing just fine.

The babies are both doing great. They gave me an ultrasound, but it was on one of those really old ancient machines that aren't good quality for actually seeing anything. But the doctor just wanted to check and make sure both babies had good heartbeats, and they did. My cervix is still firm and closed, and all the other things its supposed to be.

We ended up having an issue with the scheduling of the Level 2 ultrasound though. When I made the appointment for Dec 8th, nobody told me that I had to go across the street to the hospital and have it done there, by a Perinatologist, since I'm carrying twins. So I found out today that I cant have my Level 2 at my doctor's office like we planned. So I called to set up my appointment with the Perinatologist, and they are booked solid on December 8th. They didnt have any Mondays or Fridays available, and I started to panic. M&B already have their air tickets booked and they have projects and things at work that we have to schedule around. So after a little bit of back and forth with M, we managed to find a date that works for her & B, as well as the Peri's office. So we are now scheduled for December 11th at 9:30am...which just happens to be Ian's 5th birthday. :) I'm glad we were able to get a date agreed upon, because there was no way I was going to have the Level 2 without M&B there to see it!

So all in all, a good appointment, with a little bit of stress thrown in. I also had to deal with my insurance company but it was minor and they were really nice and are going to get the issue taken care of. :)

15 weeks!

Well here we are at 15 weeks already...and getting closer and closer to the 20 week mark! The heartburn is still going strong and I'm still getting up 2-3 times per night to use the bathroom. But in general, I feel good! I have more energy and rarely get nauseated. I really love the second trimester!

So here's what's going on with the babies at 15 weeks:

• You may begin to feel some fluttering movements as baby kicks, flails, twists and turns (but don't panic if you don't yet). She can also grasp, squint, frown, grimace and maybe suck her thumb!
• Baby's legs have grown longer than the arms and the body is now longer than the head.
  And you'll be happy to note that he is moving those arms and legs often!
• His skin is very thin -- so thin blood vessel are visible. It's covered by a fine, soft layer of hair called lanugo. Lanugo comes from a Latin word meaning "down." This hair is thought to help insulate your little boy.
• The three tiny bones in his middle ear have begun to harden. The auditory centers in baby's brain haven't developed yet, so she might not really understand what you say but her hearing capacity is in the process of developing.
• Fingernails and toenails are growing.
• Eyebrows are beginning to grow and even the hair his head is sprouting. It will probably change color and texture after birth.
• All this and your little one is an amazing 3.98 inches (10.1cm) long and may weigh 2.47 ounces (70gm).

This morning when I woke up, I rolled onto my back and just laid there for a few minutes. I laid really still and I could feel the babies. Baby B is at the top of my uterus, near my bellybutton and Baby A is down lower. I could feel movement in both places. I'm sure its only a matter of time before they are karate chopping me!

Yesterday we got the first snow of the season. It was beautiful but it melted by the time the afternoon rolled around. It's lightly snowing right now but its not going to stick. I love this time of year. I really dont mind the snow as long as I dont have to drive in it! And I'm just hoping that the weather is nice when M&B are here on Dec 7th and 8th. But even if it is snowy, its pretty to look at. :)

Next week I will have a new belly picture. I havent weighed myself...I've been too afraid to. I've been eating a lot these days! I will get my official weight from my doctor next week. I have an appointment on Wednesday afternoon.

Special Day

Well today is a special day.

No, I'm not talking about what happened last night. lol

I've been feeling babies wiggling around all day. Today the kicks and wiggles became strong enough for me to clearly tell that they were just that, and not gas bubbles or other intestinal disturbances. They wiggle more after I eat, so luckily for them I have been eating all day. :)

I cant feel them on the outside yet, but in a few weeks I'm sure they will be strong enough to be felt on the outside of my belly. Wouldn't it be awesome if M could feel them when they're here in a month?