37 weeks!

Obviously I never thought there was a real chance of me actually making it to 37 weeks! So I’m pretty surprised but also really grateful. My ultrasound went well today. Both babies are still breech so the csection is definitely happening next week. They’re weighing really good though. Baby A is estimated at 7lbs already and B is not far behind at 6lbs 9oz. 
  I’ve decided that since there’s only a week left to just take it all day by day. I’m no longer looking at the clock and expecting every contraction to turn into labor. I’m not longer expecting my water to break spontaneously as it has for many others. I’m no longer expecting my babies to be born in November. I’ve told so many people that the babies were pretty much due anytime in November since twins come early. Well, that’s clearly not my case!
  What I do know is that no matter what they will be here a week from now. This is my last week of pregnancy ever! I’ll finally know the genders and names of my babies. The past 37 weeks have absolutely flown by. With a positive attitude, I know this week will do the same. 
  I feel so blessed and so very excited. 
  The day after tomorrow I have my final OB appointment. I’ll hsve another nonstress test. I expect it’ll go about the same as last week. I’m hoping and praying my weight gain hasn’t gone up even more. At least it’s my final weigh in. The final count down!

36w 2d

  Had my first nonstress test today!! I was a bit hopeful that it would pick up a bunch of contractions but I only had one in that whole time. The babies are both doing great. A is down very low now and boy can I feel that! 
  My OB offered to check me for dilation but I declined. I’d like to be with my family tomorrow for thanksgiving so I didn’t want to risk anything. I feel like it can’t be long now anyway. If I’m wrong and they don’t come in the next few days then it’s not much longer anyway. 12 days from now I’ll have my babies! It might feel like an eternity because this point in twin pregnancy is excruciatingly painful (at least it is for me!) but it’s my last pregnancy and really such a blessing to experience in the first place. 
  If the babies stay in for long enough I’ll have my final ultrasound on Monday morning. Then I’ll go in a couple days later for anothe NST and then I’m done with doctor appointments!! That’s crazy to me. There have been days that I cried thinking I just can’t handle the pain anymore but I’m getting by! The days are moving quickly and the big day is coming. 60% of twins are born before 37 weeks so I still have a decent chance of having them in the next 4 days but I’m not holding my breath anymore. I’m in a twin pregnancy birth club and so many sets of twins have been born, many that were due after mine. I don’t want to feel envious now just because I’m in the safe zone. I just want to embrace that I’m one of the few still going strong! 
  So my next update will either be my 37 week ultrasound or the big announcement! 

35 week + 5 days

 I went to the doctor two days ago and had the group b test done. The nurse thought he’d check my cervix since I’d been up the night before until 5am with cramps and back pain. He decided not to so I still have no idea if there’s anything going on. 
  On my first post I wrote that I wanted to make it to 35 weeks and all else would be bonus. Since then I wrote that 36 weeks would be most ideal. Being only two days away from reaching that goal I feel like I’ll be surpassing it with ease. My blood pressure was perfect at this last appointment which is great! And I know the babies are doing well. My next appointment is on Wednesday and I’ll start the nonstress tests. 
  Well, my csection is schedule for December 3rd at noon so there’s only 16 more days!
  I just want them to come whenever is best for them. I just can’t wait to meet them. 

34 week + 5 day update

  I had my regular OB visit two days ago. My blood pressure is still elevated. It's in the prehypertension levels. They want me to monitor it and call if the lower number goes over 90. It's always in the 80s now. The top number fluctuates between upper 120s-140s. I'm trying to relax but it's not easy when you have young children. They still need me to take care of them!
  I have my next appointment on November 15th, so I'll see what they decide if my blood pressure hasn't decreased. My C-section has been scheduled for December 3rd but the OB doesn't think I'll make it that far. He said if my blood pressure doesn't go down or if it goes up even higher they'll bump the date up at least a week sooner.
  If I follow the average they won't be in long enough for it to even be a concern. Standing up is so uncomfortable. It feels like the babies are going to tear right down through the bottom of my belly. I get so tired of sitting around all the time, though. I want to be able to get out and live life.
  Still, I want them to stay in longer. It's hard enough knowing I won't be able to hold them right after they're born because of the whole C-section thing. If they have to go straight to the nicu or special care nursery I won't see them for even longer. I want whatever is best for them. The longest I'll have to wait now is only 23 days! 

34 weeks + 1 day

I had my 34 week ultrasound yesterday and babies are both looking healthy. A is estimated at 5lbs 5oz and B is estimated at 4lbs 14oz. They are both transverse/breech so it's looking like the C-section is happening! 
I've prepared myself for it. I've given myself time to freak out over all the things that could go wrong and now I'm ready to have faith and keep a positive attitude. Whatever is best for babies is what needs to happen.
I've had nights where I can't sleep because of cramps and pains and I've had days like today that make me feel like I'll definitely make it to 38 weeks. I see my regular OB in two days so I'll see what they say. 
I feel like they probably won't schedule anything until my next appointment at 36 weeks. They'll probably just take my vitals and listen to the hearts again. Which, I guess, doesn't really matter. My blood pressure was high yesterday but that's because I didn't get any sleep the night before. 
I expect it'll be fine now. 
Some days are so hard to get through but I need to do it. My body hurts and I can't get around very easily. This is my last pregnancy though, so I'm STILL really trying to enjoy it. It feels funny to say "enjoy" with this much pain but this is the home stretch and I'll never have these days and weeks of anticipation again. 
My main goal has always been to reach 36 weeks. I only have 13 days until I reach that goal! I know that everyone would be ok if they came now. They're out of the danger zone for major health issues caused by premature birth. They'd need to spend a few extra days in the hospital. From what I've read, there's a chance that even being born at 36 weeks or beyond that they may need to still spend those few extra days in the hospital.
I'm glad that they're both weighing in well. I expect that they'll both be over 5lbs at birth which is great.
I just can't wait to meet them. Being team green, I don't even know what their names are yet. I've been so patient and I'm trying to remain that way but I'm excited. I hope that I don't have to wait another 4 weeks but we will see. If I do, it'll be my last 4 weeks of pregnancy EVER. My high risk OB said something about my regular OB scheduling me for a C-section in the 38th week but my regular OB said they won't let me go past 38 weeks so I'm counting on that. Most of what I've read said that 37 weeks is the safest time for twins to be born. The average is 35-36 weeks. 
How close I might be! :)

33 weeks, 4 days

  As I expected, they didn't do any cervical checks at my last appointment. The night before I went in, I had contractions 5 mins apart for 45 minutes but they weren't very painful. I've had some strong, yet not very painful, ones since but nothing that close together. I can feel that baby A has dropped. I've been exhausted this week. 
 Last week I would wake up, wide awake, every morning between 2-4am and stay up for a couple hours before going back to sleep. I'm past that now but just so drained all the time no matter what. Perhaps the babies are having growth spurts. 
  My next ultrasound is in 3 days. I'm looking forward to seeing their new weight estimate. I'm also looking forward to hearing what the high risk doctor will say now that I'm past 32 weeks. I'll be 34 weeks the day I see him! One of my biggest goals this whole pregnancy was to make it to the month of November so I'm really excited that I've done that. My next goal is to make it another week and 3 days, then I'll feel more comfortable with my regular OB delivering them in the hospital without the nicu. Ideally, I would still like to make it to 36 weeks. The last time I wrote a post I was very certain that I could surpass that goal. Now, I'm not so sure. There's so much pressure when I stand up. If they gain half a pound per week, then they might weigh around 5 pounds a piece now. I would be really happy with that. On average, twins are born weighing about 5.5lbs so I think I'm doing a good job! I would just like for them to stay in a little bit so they can breathe better on their own when they're born and so I'll be able to nurse them.
 I will certainly update more after my high risk appointment on Monday. I'm so tired right now and need to take a nap while my mom has my 3 year old and my 6 year old is in school. Soon naps will be a thing of the past! So I plan to enjoy them whenever I can. 

32 weeks!!

  New milestone! As of today, I'll be able to deliver at the hospital that is only 20 minutes away from my house. There was a point in time that I had considered still driving to the hospital that is 40 minutes away just because they have a level 3 nicu but the thought of driving 40 minutes while in preterm labor is scary. I had my other two kids at this closer hospital so I know that it's a good one. 
  Things seems to still be going pretty well. I did have some light brown spotting yesterday but the doctor said I can wait until my appointment Thursday to come get checked out.. unless I end up with bright red spotting. The Braxton hicks contractions are amping up but they aren't painful like labor contractions. My body hurts though. My back pain is the worst.
  I have a feeling that the babies won't be born until December. My doctor will induce me December 3rd if I make it to that date. Everything I've read says that 70% of twins are born before 37 weeks, most being between 35-36 weeks. My goal has always been to reach 36 weeks but with how well everything is going it feels like I can fly past that goal.
I've never had any cervical checks so I don't know if I'm dilating yet. 
Maybe they'll check this week. Or maybe they'll never check. 
  It's still hard not knowing what to expect but I'm staying strong! If the babies are gaining half a pound a week then they're about 4.5lbs a piece about now. A combined weight of 9lbs is the most I've carried. My son comes in second at 8lbs 7oz and I was already over 39 weeks at that point. I have another ultrasound at 34 weeks so we'll see what that one says. By that point I could be carrying 11lbs of baby! I know ultrasound measurements can be off in either direction. I do hope that they're close to these weights just in case they are born soon. 
  Well, my next milestone to reach is between 34-35 weeks so my regular OB can deliver the babies. This would be most ideal for me. The hospital she delivers at doesn't have a nicu at all so that makes me a little nervous. I intend to ask questions at my appointment Thursday. 
  So far, the nursery is almost done. We are still waiting for our second crib mattress to arrive. It had a big rip in the middle when we received it the first time. If anyone's wondering, it's a sertapedic from target. Customer service was nice about it but I'm a little annoyed that they aren't rushing the order considering they sent us a ripped mattress! So, waiting on that to get here. I planned to pack my hospital bag 6 weeks ago but still haven't done that. I really should do that this week. Another recommendation at this point is to install the car seats. The only issue is that would mean my 6 and 3 year old would have their seats moved to the back and there isn't an easy way to help them buckle themselves in that way. It's something we'll have to deal with eventually and have been trying to get them to do it themselves now, but the 3 year old especially needs help. A van probably would have made things easier but I liked the three row SUV we found. It was a great deal. It'll be easier to lean over the middle row when I don't have a boulder attached to my midsection. 
  I'll update after my Thursday appointment if there's any news. Usually at my regular OB appointments they listen with the doppler and take my vitals and send me on my way. So, we will see if they do anything else this week!