This is really hard !

I haven't written an update in while simply because I there wasn't much to tell and frankly at this moment there isn't a lot to update. The Minis seem to have decided they are perfectly happy where they are and don't want to come into the world quite yet, despite my best efforts in encouraging them along. I've tried everything. Seriously, EVERYTHING. I've had two very uncomfortable procedures at the doctor's office to help things along and alas, here they stay inside my seriously huge belly measuring the same as a woman who would be 50 weeks pregnant..... so imagine if a woman was pregnant for almost a year.

I hate to admit I've grown weary of the comments in the stores, talking about my body with random strangers who can't help my stare at the sight that is this magnificent belly. My poor mother has been here for the past month waiting around with me (something we hadn't anticipated in the least) and I think perhaps we're all just not sure if the Minis will EVER come. It's strange to have spent much of the last half of my pregnancy preventing pre-term labor and now I'd give my right arm to go into labor... I guess the moral of this: bed rest works, sometimes a little too well. 

On Monday I saw my doctor and he just wasn't ready to induce, even though the girls are super healthy and ready. So I've been walking around at 4.5cm and 100% effaced for a week or more... I can't imagine why I'm so uncomfortable! In desperation after my appointment on Monday, I dragged Jon to the OHSU stairs on Terwilliger and did stair repeats... it didn't work.  I see the doctor again on Friday and am so hopeful I will go into labor before then... but if not, I'm hopeful he'll consider doing more to help this process along.  

I wish I could be more positive: I mean, I get all the positive things about the girls staying in here, "Hang in there!" blah blah blah, but this Really, Really Really Hard... carrying around two 6.5lb babies plus all their goodies (placentas, amniotic sacks, etc) we're talking 20+ lbs just hanging off the front of me ALL the time and the load is only getting larger and heavier everyday. 

I appreciate all the followers through this whole process and had hoped to dig for more positive energy in this post... but I'm afraid at the moment what you get is the real, hardcore truth. Pregnancy is no joke, being pregnant with twins is really no joke. I'm still focusing on the day I get to see their faces, and kiss their little feet.... and I'm praying that day is not just soon, but like, TODAY. 

16 more days! But who's counting?

I don't have any miraculous updates to give lately. We're in the waiting mode... just sitting around and waiting. I've been on bed rest for over a month now and all I can say.. it SUCKS! .. but the good news, it's helping. I'm now almost 33 weeks and the girls are looking great, they are getting big, kicking and punching me hard while wiggling all over the place.

Personally, I'm feeling like I've had just about enough of this being pregnant thing lately and while I really want them to grow and be healthy and certainly will do all I can to ensure that happens... I'm also very eagerly awaiting their getting the boot from my belly. Oh how I miss the days of cocktails in the sunshine, seeing anything in the lower half of my body, being able to bend over, and laying on my stomach ... ohhhh that probably most of all.

So we're at 16 days and counting till we've reached the ominous 35 weeks, a huge milestone and likely when I can ease off this best rest and start doing a few things again before they arrive. I say few, cause seriously I am winded just walking up the stairs!

We're ready for them, the hospital bag is packed, the car seats are installed, everything is washed, the diaper stations are ready... we got this! Shoot this reminds me, I haven't washed the bottles! Okay, we're 99.9% ready!

I have continued taking a weekly picture and will put them all together after I deliver..... however, I am so tired of people telling me how small my belly is! Clearly, they haven't seen many other 33 week pregnant women! I assure everyone, the girls are growing great, and I am, despite what the pictures might seem, measuring significantly further along than 43+ weeks of being pregnant with one baby.... GEEZ! I think the incredible size of my boobs have to be balancing out my stomach and giving it an optical illusion of being smaller.

Also, I'd hoped to have escaped the stretch marks, but this week... just seemed overnight a few showed up :( Bummer... oh well.. it was bound to happen.

Check in again soon!

Rounding home base!

So much has happened since the last blog post and at the same time it feels like nothing has really changed.. I'm still pregnant, just bigger. It's become evident that we're feeling the pressure of time beginning to slip away before we meet the girls for the first time. It's crazy to me to think that they will be here next month!
I N S A N I T Y.... Thinking way back to November when we started this whole process July seemed like a long long time away and now we down to single digit weeks left.

Let's see since the last update, I had a spectacular baby shower, filled with gifts, friends, beautiful flowers, and generally one of the most amazing days I'd had in a very long time. I was filled with joy that so many amazing women planned and helped me celebrate this event in my life. I have't really been one to have a lot of girlfriends in my life, but since moving to Portland I've just met so many inspiring women that I can hardly say that statement is true anymore... and sharing the day with all the women I've connected with since moving here was truly meaningful. My mom made the trip from Arizona to be here for the shower as well my good friend Trysta from California ... two really awesome gifts of love. The shower was "tea for two" and super girly and fun, I loved it! There were so many gifts, that my small bladder couldn't make it through the opening of them all with out a break! (pretty funny, actually). For those of you that read this blog and came to the shower, thank you! And for those friends from afar, I know you were there in spirit.

I mentioned my mom came for the shower, she also brought my dad along to join in on the incredible lack of fun I am for several days. I say that cause I'm huge, I can't do  much of anything, and I'm pretty tired... so sometimes I make the worst kind of company. He came anyways, and was able to go to one of the ultrasounds I had scheduled for the week.. they both were able to feel the girls kick this visit and I think the whole thing made the trip worthwhile even if I wasn't the best company. My mom and dad also did lots of things to help out around the house.... how awesome are parents?! Mom cleaned, and cooked/prepped a bunch of freezer meals so we didn't have to worry about cooking so much. Dad helped Jon learn how to install new toilets (two new low flow commodes in our house!), and they cleaned up all the weeds from the yard and attempted to figure out how to kill the mole that is ruining our once beautiful lawn :( ... unfortunately no success yet. I am so grateful for their help... and can't wait for my mom to return next month... as I know we will need all the hands we can get for the first several weeks.

Let's see... I had some tests done as well, one didn't go as well as I'd hoped and and I had to go back and have a follow up test for gestational diabetes, called the 3 hour glucose test.... it wasn't much fun at all and really stressed me out, but I will choose to focus on the fact that I passed it, and now it's behind me. <moving on>  No more ten hours of fasting, and 4 blood draws, hooray!

This weekend we went to a class for twins newborn care and breastfeeding..... it was information overload, and I'm not sure if it made me feel better or worse about where we're at. The thought of one baby is pretty overwhelming to the majority of people, two.. let's just say it's going to be intense... but I am sure I will figure it out. At one point in the class the woman teaching, managed to get both babies (who were visiting to talk to us soon to be parents) onto a feeding pillow, bottle feed them both at the same time, continue feeding one while burping other, then switch, then change diapers, and swaddle them and you'd swear she was David Copperfield status with her magic trick of doing this all flawlessly.  The class was eye opening, though and definitely worth the time and effort to take it.

I saw this the other day and had to laugh at the # of strangers who try to relate by telling me how close their kids are in age.

I'm afraid I have no other news to share.. and the news train is slowing down before the big day.. we have another ultrasound on Wednesday this week, I am sure they will measure everyone again... we're crossing our fingers that Baby B has flipped from breech to head down.... and that she stays there. But other than that... we're on the home stretch, I even have a countdown on my phone.. I am feeling ridiculously uncomfortable all the time.. sometimes it's a little overwhelming it's so much... but Jon's incredible and doing all he can to help me and make as comfortable as possible.....

For now I'll try to check in at least one more time before they arrive.. and of course once they are here we'll get to reveal the names! :) (I wouldn't wait, but Jon wants too)


Baby shower pictures!

Sitting around and growing people

I haven't written an update in a while and thought I'd share a little more detail about what's been going on in the land of the mini sterns. While the girls are growing and doing great, I was put on bed rest last week from a small scare on Saturday night and after my follow up on Monday it was determined that it was best for everyone if I went on modified bed rest. What does that even mean? It means, I have to stay sitting or laying down 80% of the time with my feet up. No more working out, no more shopping trips, no more walking around the neighborhood, drastically reduce the amount I'm on my feet... so mostly anything and everything has fallen into Jon's lap. This rest will hopefully stop the progression of my cervix shortening too quickly and keep these girls cooking inside of the oven for as long as possible.

After a week of being on bed rest, I have less than amazing and positive things to say about being pregnant. I feel truly blessed to have these girls, but the selfish parts of being pregnant have been weighing on me a bit lately and my positivity has been challenged a bit over the past week or two. Frankly, this has been hard, I'm uncomfortable all the time, my pregnant belly measuring in at 37+ weeks in size at week 27 means I'm full term size with two months to go of growing and thought of that is pretty daunting. I miss being active and working out with my friends, miss the petty things like wine, stinky cheese,  a working brain, and being able to see the bottom half of my body.

This time has however, made me extremely grateful for many things.. my wonderful husband, who is kind and eager to help me no matter how tired he is or how much he has on his plate, he's been to every single medical appointment we've had since we started the IVF process and throughout our entire pregnancy, he's more than anyone could ever hope to find in a partner and I am truly lucky. I also wanted to say how much I am grateful for my mom, she's always been my very best friend and while we live a long ways away from each other she's already been to visit once and is coming again this weekend and staying a while to help out while I'm on rest, and then again when the girls arrive... she's been so incredibly giving with her time, excitement, and efforts in my pregnancy I'm so blessed to have her to share this with. Also, I am glad I am flexible, have strong arms (to pull, and lift my huge self up with) and happy I have extremely dexterous feet, as they have saved me from having to bend over to pick many things up off the ground! Hooray for monkey feet, as Jon calls them.

As for the part you're probably most interested in..... the girls are PERFECT, we got the chance to see them in 3d last week and while generally I find those pictures creepy... I couldn't help that with them being my own children... they were so beautiful. I can't wait to see and touch their faces for the first time.... feel their little fingers wrap around mine and kiss their little feet, for now it's those thoughts I take with me as I'm having hard days sitting around, being lonely, and wishing time would move more quickly... I remind myself that I know this is what's best, it's temporary and it will all be a distant memory as soon as they arrive.

Stats: at 27 weeks

Twins: 2.2lbs each
Over 14 inches long each
Measuring ten weeks ahead 37 weeks belly at 27 weeks
Gained: 32lbs so far (holding steady at 1.5lbs a week or so, yikes )

I have the baby shower this weekend, I'm super excited for it! I'll post again soon. :)

26 weeks... I feel like these pictures don't do my belly justice. 

Babymoons in Maui

Jon and I just got back last week from a beautiful and relaxing week in Maui. We wanted to take a beach vacation together and hoped to find some time to relax a little just the two of us before everything changes in the coming months and pretty much for the rest of our lives. Maui was beautiful, lovely, and a place I'd love to return to someday when I'm less pregnant and can engage in all the fun looking adventurous activities! Kayaking, hiking, snorkeling, sailing, paddle boarding, etc. All of it looked so fun and it was hard to not want to join in on all the beach activity fun. Jon was a super trooper though and he rented beach chairs and made a nice little beach lounger for me while he went snorkeling nearly every day we were there... he of course informed me of every fish he saw on the color guide they gave him at the snorkel shop ;)

One of the days Jon got back from snorkeling and I let him know that baby A had kicked the crap out of me and he could probably feel for himself now. He eagerly laid on the sand next to me with the ocean in front of us and put his hand on my stomach and waited patiently, till then without fail she delivered a swift kick. He jumped and said "omg I FELT IT!"  They've been letting me know they are in there ever since then, and are kicking and punching up a storm ...sometimes at all hours of the day. I can't imagine what it will feel like when they really start putting some weight on, I swear at times they are practicing kung-fu.

Besides the moving girls and finally having something tangible to share with Jon in this experience other than an ultrasound and my occasional (ok regular) complaining...

We took a drive along the north shore which was not really written about much but was seriously one of the most beautiful and freaky drives I've ever been on, think large sections of cliff-side one lane two way roads.... really room for about 1.5 cars. It's not a drive I would suggest for most drivers, in fact... please if you are the least bit faint of heart in yours or your partners driving do yourself and everyone else a favor and DO NOT drive this stretch of road :)

On our final day we had to check out of the hotel by 11 and our flight didn't leave till 11 that night, so we set out for Hana hwy and the Garden of Eden, it took quite a bit longer to get there due to some of the less than skilled aforementioned drivers who decided to they would try their hand at Hana hwy driving, confusing the gas and brake pedal at randomly determined times within the curves of the road. The garden was so perfect, I only wished we had more time to explore before we had to head back to the coast for our whale watching excursion! It looked like we weren't going to get to see any whales, but on our way back we came across a mom and her week old baby whale splashing, playing, flapping, nursing, breeching... it was so amazing to witness. What incredible animals they are! It was so special to get to see them up close  (for a good solid 10-15 minutes) and before they made their way further away from our boat, for an extra bonus, you could see their tails flap and dive in the setting sun out the back of the boat for most of the ride back to the harbor, it was a fantastic way to end the trip.


In other news....
We have our 24 week appointment next week making it just a little more than 3 months left before we will likely meet our two little girls (assuming they make it to 37 weeks, which I HOPE!). My stomach is growing like a weed, and I'm finding it harder and harder to eat much, my stomach feels like it's the size of a peanut and my bladder, maybe smaller. Fun times! I'll update next week with some video and mini's related news.... after that it should be more frequent as our appointments will start to be more frequent than they have been to this point.... we're getting closer everyday.

The Nursery is finally done!

After a lot more work and more time than we could have even anticipated the nursery is complete! (Glad we got an early start!).... except for a few minor details. But it's most certainly time for the big reveal! :) We're thrilled with the room and can't wait to share in all the memories this room will hold in the coming years.

Ta Da! 

My grandfather Jack made this chest for me a very long time ago.

A few trinkets from around the world, and generations before them.

A dear friend made this for me, and I adore it. 

Pound puppies! 

Update: Twenty week Scan! Photos And Videos!

We've officially past the halfway point for twins. It's wild to think we've come further than we have to go before our little girls will grace this earth with their presence. It's been a pretty crazy past couple of weeks: we've finished the nursery (my next post); my mom came for a great week-long visit to help buy clothes & organize; and of course help me celebrate my 33rd birthday! This may be the first birthday in 12 years that hasn't included a glass of wine or toast with bubbly, somehow the cucumber water I was drinking just didn't do it for me. Oh well just a few more months and then it will be five o'clock somewhere!

It was wonderful and special to have my mom in town for the week, we were able to hit up the thrift stores and found a MAJOR score at our very first stop, two onesies for a buck you say? We went item by item, ooo-ing and ahhh-ing at the cuteness of it all with the intention of going back through the cart and narrowing it down to the really good quality cute stuff. That was our plan, anyway. In reality, we put back three things from a cart full of clothes. We checked out and the gentleman at the counter was so sweet and overwhelmed at the quantity of things we purchased he just gave it all to us for 30 bucks! Mega score! We also found a few other stores that were filled with cute and adorable things we couldn't resist. After the first day of shopping, we got back and needed to do three laundry-loads of infant clothes, then sort, fold, and hang it all! After going gleefully through our purchases again, we decided it was probably best to focus on the bigger sizes now -- "9 months and bigger from now on!" -- and we held to it, mostly. Let's just say these two little girls are going to be quite stylin' and will have a wardrobe to challenge mine.

Marvel at the collection of hanging dresses

Mom made these while she was here! So adorable! 

This drawer is stuffed full of newborn and 0-3 month clothing

And the bigger sizes! 

Mom also took me shopping for my birthday (waaay to generously) and we picked up some very exciting maternity items for me, a beautiful maxi dress, a totally banging hot red tankini for the upcoming babymoon next week, a pair of cute maternity jeans (if I have to wear the ones I have another day I might start screaming), and some maternity underwear!! Yahoo! Who knew you could get so excited about maternity panties?



It's been a fantastic month, I can't believe if all goes well.. we have just four months left..... I also can't believe my stomach will be growing for another four months! YOWZA!

The two week span shots I have taken are really alarming! Babies, they are a growin'. Oh and one more great thing, I did hit my weight target for the 20 week appointment, so at least now I know I've done what I can to give these little ladies the best start they can possibly have, hooray for bread, cheese, and the occasional fried pickle for helping make the weight gain happen!


I have some exciting pictures to share this time, ultrasounds, clothes, belly shots, and a few video clips from the ultrasound. PS, did you know with twins, you get charged for TWO ultrasounds! Ouch.

Video Clips!

Baby B's face and she's touching her head

And let the space feud begin! Some pretty good punches and kicks, the thing waving back and forth in the middle is the amniotic sack, looks strong enough I guess.