Losing my ability to breathe... already

I knew at some point that this was going to happen... had been hoping it might be awhile before the breathlessness came in but these babies had other ideas. Last night I had several episodes where my chest was heavy and burning and no matter how much I tried it seemed like I wasnt getting enough oxygen. Not a great feeling believe me. And the funny thing is that I was having these while sitting or laying down. So I checked and no, my fingers or lips werent turning blue, my capillary refill was fine... heart rate was a little up but that could be related to the 'smothered fish feeling'

But they went away so I brushed them off. My chest still feels tired this morning and I'm SOB (short of breath) when I get up to do normal tasks around the house. These babies must be pushing up hard against my diaphragm. So don't worry about me, I'll keep an eye on it and the babies are moving a lot so they aren't too bothered by it. Everything I've read online says this happens but it's abnormal for me because I never had it with Abby. We went on a walk yesterday afternoon and it didnt bother me much then, and I tend to feel better when I'm standing up... so maybe it's my posture?

24 weeks today! yay!!!! Our twins are the size of the picture I posted on here. (Just imagine one of the baby's head up instead of down. Here is what is currently going on with them:

"How your baby's growing:
Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts her at just over a pound. Since she's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), she cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon start to plump up. Her brain is also growing quickly now, and her taste buds are continuing to develop. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help her air sacs inflate once she hits the outside world. Her skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon."

Well it's time for me to get Abby down for a nap so that my Mom and I can head up to Sioux Falls today and pick out some paint for her new room... things are slowly coming together. No painting for me tho :(

23w 5d Appointment Update

Sorry I didnt get this out there right away, Abby and I spent some time running around Sioux Falls and then we went out to eat with my mom and my brother Andrew. The good news is the babies are still doing wonderfully. Baby A is 1lb 6oz and Baby B is 1lb 5oz and as my OB pointed out they have reached the point where they can survive outside the womb if something happens and they come too early. (yay!!!!) Though we want them to stay in at LEAST another 4 weeks because their health will only get better. ZERO signs of Twin Twin Transfusion once again and my cervix has thinned a little but still looking good so we are now past the point of cervical incompetence issues and move onto the point of watching out for preterm labor.

I've started spotting again (sigh) but because the babies, the cervix and the placenta look so good they arent overly concerned about it and are just going to keep an eye on it. (Still very annoying and slightly scary for me) I had a feeling that Baby B flipped... and I was right. Instead of laying across the top of my abdomen she is now breech on my left side and Baby A still remains head down on my right side. It's amazing how strong they are and how hard they can kick! I just figure B got tired of playing footsie with a slightly more active sister.

I have another appointment the week after next... and I'll be back at school! (yikes!) We will be doing the glucose check (yay for orange drink stuff) and then another ultrasound and Peri appt and OB appt... the fun never ends I tell you. Dr H said that if I was having twins with 2 placentas I would be going in 4 weeks from now but because of the one placenta we go in more often. She explained that it's just hard to really know how the babies are doing without an ultrasound because kick counts are really difficult and there is no way to measure to see if the babies are growing right outside of an ultrasound. So... looks like I'll be giving you guys appointment updates here for awhile. Did I mention my blood pressure was amazing once again? 92/60?? All that walking and Abby running must be keeping me in shape... and I hadnt gained as much weight as I thought I had so we're ok there too... Dr says I still look fit and trim and she'd never guess by looking at me that I was 24 weeks with twins. (I'm measuring 31 weeks now across the abdomen)

Ok better go lay down for a nap while Abby is sleeping... this day has completely worn me out! More to come and thank you Lord for another happy report and a good day :)

Oh! and if you are wondering why there is only a picture of B... A decided she was not going to get her picture taken, her face was pressed up against my back and she never flipped... so perhaps next time we'll trick her into getting her picture taken! B took some coaxing herself and we could only get her to move her hand/arm a little to get a sneak peak of her face... little stinkers!

A quick update...

I'm starving and Abby is napping ... so writing on this blog PROBABLY shouldnt be the first thing I do. But it's quiet, the weather is gorgeous and I just wanted to write before we decided to do other things today and I didnt get back to my computer. The twins are making me uncomfortable! I'm pretty sure A (or B i guess) moved or shifted or did something because she is digging into some muscle or nerve or tendon on my left side. Normally I only feel them on the right, since they have been hanging out their so long. I guess we'll find out tomorrow when we have the ultrasound to see where they are.

Ahhh tomorrow... our ALMOST 24 week appointment. I'm so excited to see how they are doing! I wonder if they will continue scheduling the ultrasounds every other week? It's just comforting to see that everything is doing ok... by the end of the 2 weeks I'm anxious to see my babies. (how spoiled I am!) They've been a little quiet today so I'm watching that a little... can you tell I'm getting paranoid? I'm STARVING all of the time now, I swear I want to eat almost every 2-4 hours... though thats probably because I only eat a bit at a time since my stomach is starting to get squished a little lol. I'm a little worried about my weight gain since I've been gaining really fast these last few weeks. Considering how hard it was to gain in my first trimester this second has been a breeze... almost too easy. I think I've gained almost 30 pounds now! I should be happy about that because it means babies are growing good... I'm just starting to swell a little and I'm hoping it's not a sign of things to come. I want to avoid bedrest and high blood pressure at all costs. In the last 2 weeks I think Ive gained 6-8 pounds... doesnt that seem like a lot? We walk a lot and I'm just as active as always... don't eat a ton... but am still really gaining... I'll ask Dr Hermanson about that tomorrow.

Well thats it for now! Time for lunch!!!! (PS arent my pictures fun!!! I'll post more later but you can see more of them on Facebook. It was hard to do them myself but I think I got some good ones. I cant wait till the twins come! I'm going to have a blast!)

The Aftermath of Camping

Wow can I just say how tired I am and how 'hard' camping is when you are this pregnant?? In retrospect it PROBABLY wasn't the best idea to go along camping with my family the first night with Abby while Tom stayed home (because he had to work). It was just hard because Abby was in full blown craziness and wanted to run everywhere... including the roads... and frankly I can only run after her so many times before I am exhausted. I actually RAN once because she headed for the road just as a car was headed her direction... wow I haven't run while this pregnant in a LONG time. Just imagine strapping a 20 pound pack to your stomach and attempting to run... it just doesnt work... believe me.

So my poor mother had to help me with Abby because the rest of my family were too busy with camping things. She ended up having to help me a lot until Tom came... which wouldn't have been AS hard except for another child situation and my mom having to help with that too. I was so frustrated by the next morning, the babies were squrimy and I never sleep great when Tom and I are apart... Abby ended up in my bed around 2am and she is a violent sleeper... to top it off she woke me up at 8am and it was RAINING!! There was no place to go and if you know Abby you understand how frustrating this could be. I kept her quiet for as long as I could until Mom woke up and took her out to the truck, we played in the truck for about 30-45 minuets before we decided the rest of the crew was just going to have to wake up...

But I've vented enough... let's just say that part was hard. Thankfully I made it through a weekend of camping and I can feel like I didn't miss out this summer. Though this is certainly my last time camping this summer. It's interesting to think about what next year could be like? A 2 year old and 2 almost year olds? Might be too crazy for much camping. When Tom came things got easier because we could tag team and he takes such good care of me. I dont know how single parents do it, I love having a partner in crime!

Our next ultrasound is on Thursday and I can't wait! The girls will be 23w and 5 days so almost 24 weeks! Almost to that first checkpoint and than it's off to the 26, 28, 30, 32 and etc!! Yay!