Almost 31 weeks (will be in two days)

Ultrasound Today
Things look good :-) Both babies past their anatomy scan with A's :-) They didn't do measurements because they did that last week and they only do measurements every 2 weeks. 
Both have almost equal fluids - the past few weeks Repete's fluid levels have been a little low. 
I'll likely have steroid shots next week. She said I could have them today, but because the babies look good, she recommended I wait till next week just so the shots are closer to when they are born. 
I also start NST's (Non-Stress Tests) this week.  I'm so happy to have make it to (almost) 31 weeks! (Friday) And both babies are still in me and healthy :-D  I cannot wait to hold these little boys, but I'm also happy they are still inside and growing :-)

 I'm still quite nervous about the C-Section... and am pretty sure I'm going to get a belly binder for after - some ppl recommend it, some people don't. One of the main reasons I'd like to get one is because I'm not expecting this to be a 'normal' C-Section recovery where I can just stay home and take care of my babies. I'm likely going to be in the hospital for 2/3 days, then have to go home and leave my babies at the hospital... I'm pretty sure I'm not going to want to hold a pillow to my tummy back and forth from home to the NICU, and in the NICU etc. and I'm pretty sure someone is going to have to knock me out and tie me down in order for them to keep me at home and not go to see my babies at the hospital! So for that reason, I'm pretty sure a belly binder would benefit me more than the 'average' person getting a C-Section. :-P (I'm also not planning on using it at home, or right after the C-Section when I'm still in the hospital, just mostly for going to and from the hospital/NICU to see the babies :-)  )

What else is new here?
Well, my sister Nicole has been here for a few weeks now :-)  She has been helping me so much! Although I'm not on bed rest, the dr's recommend that I put as much of my energy as I can into growing babies, especially with Repete being so small. Without Nicole here - well, I wouldn't have much energy after the day's basic chores with 3 kids :-P She's been doing so much for me! I get naps pretty much everyday, she cleans up, bakes, dusts (!), takes care of the kids, does the laundry, gets the phone, answers the door etc :-D She is pretty fantastic! I'm really glad she could come here before I'm in the hospital, this way she learns the kids daily routine, so not much changes for them except the fact that Mom's not home :-) It just makes it easier for the kids.  I feel so blessed to have her around to help so much! I'm also super happy the young ppl here have been so welcoming to her :-) She's been having such a great time hanging out with you all, and it makes me feel better to know she's not getting bored out of her mind just being my housemaid/nanny and she is able to get out and do something aside from laundry, cleaning etc. :-) Special thanks to my SIL Rachel, who doesn't seem to mind being her taxi driver :-P

Almost 31 weeks Pregnant :-) Measuring the same as I was when I was due with the Miriam, Dylan, and Lydia. I don't feel super huge, and I'm not super uncomfortable, the 'round ligament pain is worse this time, but other than that, I feel about due :-P

Weight Gain:  Still around 2lbs

Maternity Clothes: Yup, I'm measuring the same as when I was due with the other 3 :-) I can still wear some regular shirts - One positive thing about being overweight! lol 

Sleep: Now that my sister is here get a nap almost everyday! Nights I try to go to bed by 10, toss and turn a little, wake up to pee... but I do get some sleep :-) I'm not as uncomfortable as I thought I would be :-)

How I'm feeling: Nervous, excited,and  relaxed :-) I actually feel all these at once... yup, it's possible :-P I'm so glad my little sister is here to help me :-) she's been cleaning, baking, babysitting etc. :-) So nice to go for a nap in the afternoon with the house a mess, and wake up to a clean, neat house that smells like freshly baked cookies! :-) 

Belly Button: Still an inny, Ya.... it's not going to be an outy. Ever. lol 

What I miss: - Sitting down in the evening with my hubby and a glass of wine.
- Being able to keep working with out sitting down every 20 mins :-P
- The full capacity of my lungs. 
- Wearing my comfy jogging pants.


What I'm looking forward too: - A fully renovated main bathroom (yes, I know, that's not pregnancy related :-P ) 
- Getting after my kids faster when they are bad... Right now they have figured out that Mom doesn't get up quite a quickly as before, and are taking full advantage of Mom's lack of energy/speed.
- Drinking more coffee
- Wine
- Snuggling two little babies (heart)
- Seeing my family later this year, beginning of next.

Size of Babies:  

Nesting: I think so... again, I never really know. But I can't really act on it anyway -  I'm not supposed to do too much, and anything I'd do would likely get dirty again due to the bathroom renovation going on lol. 

Bathroom Reno Continued...

So the bathroom renovation is coming along nicely :-) Because everything had to be ripped out, and because Matthew works full time and I can't do much to help him with the reno, this reno is taking a little longer than your average bathroom reno. But, it's going faster than I thought it would :-D My hubby is amazing! :-) I think the only thing that we are saving from the old bathroom and using again is the toilet... everything else had to go! :-) The wall behind the tub has a window on it, and the window wasn't very well sealed, so when you took a shower I'm pretty sure the water ran down the wall into the wood and insulation :-(  So Matthew had to replace the wood and insulation as well as the old window (It'll be nice to take a shower in the winter without getting a cold draft from the old single pane window and poorly insulated wall... half of you has goose bumps and the other half is burning hot... lol). Matthew also replaced the plumbing/pipes to and from the tub/shower because the cold water only came out as a trickle and it was rather annoying to get the temperature right, and still have enough water pressure to rinse the shampoo out of you hair... lol  - he replaced the plumbing/pipes for the bathroom sink as well because otherwise the cabinet wouldn't fit.
 And in case you are wondering - yes, we will be getting blinds for the window so ppl can't see in when someone is taking a shower :-P


                                    Matthew getting ready to put the new window in.

          New wood vs old rotted wood... some of the wood just fell apart in your hand! Not good!

                            This wall looks much better than the one he ripped out!

                                                       Some of the stuff he ripped out...

Reading the installation instructions for the new bathroom fan... it's a blade-less fan VERY quiet so it doesn't wake up Lydia and the twins every morning - the bathroom is quite close to their rooms, so we splurged a little on this item :-)   (Lydia loves her Daddy - so cute!)

                                                        'Helping' Daddy... hee hee

Daddy makes such a mess! Matthew had just taken out the old door and Lydia came to see what the commotion was all about... she looked at the floor and frowned, then she ran to the kitchen and came back with a cloth to clean up the mess!  haha! So cute!

The tub is in!!!! yahoo!! This tub has been sitting in our garage for almost 2 years... We found it at home hardware for super cheap and we knew we would be renovating the bathroom sometime in the future so we bought it - is a super nice deep soaker tub! Can't wait to use it!! :-)

Haha! Matthew trying to get at the plumbing stuff after he installed the tub... shows how great my kitchen cabinets are hey?? He didn't even have to take the back of the cabinet out, it was already out... ya... one day hopefully we can renovate the kitchen lol For now I'll just keep the cupboard doors closed ;-)

The new door is in! :-)  We are changing all the doors in the upstairs hallway to match :-) We bought them a few months ago on sale :-P  (we bought the bathroom cabinet a few months ago on sale too lol)

What my bathroom looks like today :-) He is leaving the toilet working for as long as possible so I don't have to walk downstairs at 3am to go pee... :-D

Another update on our twins

So it's been a bit since I've updated you all on our little boys :-)
I've still been having weekly ultrasounds, and now am seeing my OB every 2 weeks :-)
 So far things have been going well. Both boys are still growing, the blood flows in their hearts, brains, and umbilical cords are good :-) There is still a size difference though. At my ultrasound today Pete measured exactly according to my dates (29wks) 2lb 14oz, and Repete measured at (almost 25wks) 1lb 9oz. So far Repete isn't growing as quickly as Pete, but he's still growing. The dr. says there is still a little concern that Repete won't make it -  about 5-10% 'chance', but other than size they can't find any reason for concern.

Often people ask 'when is your due date?' That is a really hard question to answer, officially my due date is Oct 4th, BUT with twins I believe 38 weeks is considered 'full term'.(instead of 40wks with a singleton) Another thing to factor in is that I've had the TTTS laser sugery, typically delivery after that surgery is around 10 weeks post surgery. (that's this Friday for me) A few ultrasounds ago the dr. at the hospital was fairly confident we would make it to 32 weeks. :-)  So you see, it's hard to say when the 'due date' is cuz if I continue to say Oct. 4 ppl will be fairly shocked the twins came 'so early'... but really, we were 'expecting' them to come 'that early' :-P
We have also been talking to a few dr's, and reading as much as we can about the differences of having a C-section or doing a vaginal birth - taking into account, they share a placenta, they have a size difference, they will be fairly young, and have had the surgery for TTTS.  There are risks and benefits with both, but the biggest risk comes with the vaginal delivery because the twins will likely be still very small and the stress from contractions could be too much for them, so it is possible that one or both die. I would be hooked up to monitors the whole time, I would have an epidural just in case of an emergency c-section, and the birth would also be done in an OR or very close to an OR. Because of the possibility of loosing one or both, Matthew and I are both thinking a scheduled C-Section is really our best option. The risks with a C-Section are mainly infection etc. for me, and not so much for the babies, although if both babies make it, there are some benefits of a vaginal birth for the twins, one of which is better immunity in the first bit after birth... but then again, I am strep B positive, and that risk of infection is pretty much gone if I just have a scheduled C-Section. GRRR...So MANY decisions to make this pregnancy! :-S
Some other things that come into account will be if Repete (closest to my cervix, so first one out) is head down or not - if he's bum down my dr. wouldn't try for a vaginal birth. Also, how big both babies are, and a few other things... so really, everything has to line up perfectly just for the dr. to consider a vaginal birth, which means it may just be a C-Section even if we decided to go the vaginal birth route :-P
 Also, the question is WHEN is the best time to deliver... After reading and reading and reading, and talking to a few different dr's (which often have a different opinion depending on how much they deal with mo/di, ttts twin pregnancies) We would love to make it to 34 weeks, but because of the small size of Repete, it's possible his portion of the placenta doesn't keep him nourishing him much longer. They are monitoring this with weekly ultrasounds, but we don't really know how much longer the placenta will hold up, It could be a week, a month... We don't know.

Something the dr's are watching right now is whether there is still an intact dividing membrane, last week's ultrasound they couldn't see well enough if the membrane was broken or not, and this week they still couldn't tell... the babies are also getting bigger so their limbs and bodies sometimes just get in the way. Not a big deal of it is broken, because the risks of cord entanglement is much lower now because the babies are bigger. It just may mean I don't have the option to a vaginal birth.

Other things that have been happening - I've had lots of braxton hicks contractions, some painful ones, I seem to be getting tired faster :-S and my hips and back are starting to hurt now (before it was mainly just aches, now it's more painful). mostly if I'm in the same position for a while, (sitting, standing, laying...) I'm also really running out of lung space lol. Thankfully, I have my sister here to help me run around after the kids, and go up and down the stairs :-)
 I'm measuring around 37 weeks :-) Almost as big as I was at term with my other babies :-) Considering everything though, I feel pretty good :-) I can still do pretty much everything, although, it's not recommended that I lift too much, or do too much in a day as my cervix has started to get shorter, and almost every time I try do something for a  little too long, I start getting pretty strong braxton hicks contractions that don't go away till I sit or lay down. I really don't want to go on bedrest... and I really really don't want to go on hospital bed rest :-S So I guess I have to do a little less, and let my sister, hubby and others do stuff for me :-)

I think that's about it, I can't think of anything else right now anyway. I'll try update you all on the rest of the family, my sister coming down to help, and the bathroom reno progress soon :-)

 We still ask for prayers for our little twins.
So far these little boys have been doing so well! Thanks again for all your thoughts and prayers :-) God has been so good to us!

Miriam is 6! Bathroom Reno, and a few pics of the kids :-)

I can't believe Miriam is 6! She is such a blessing to our family! A great help around the house, makes us laugh all the time (she really can't stand it if someone is sad) She is very smart and picks up on things quite quickly. :-) We love her very much! 

I was a bit slow in buying a present this year... I found something last minute, but I couldn't get it till Sunday (bought it from a girl from church, so she was gonna pass it to me on Sunday). So on Miriam's birthday we gave her two small presents - a glasses straw (loved those when I was little!) and a box of smarties all to herself (which she generously shared with her siblings :-) )  

We didn't plan a party with friends this year, but a few cousins and grandpa and grandma showed up :-) 

Ice Cream Cake!!! Which I forgot to serve and just as Grandpa and Grandma were leaving Miriam asked if we were going to have cake... Oops - they took off their shoes again, sang happy birthday and had a piece of cake :-) We were too late to catch Uncle Nate and Aunt Lin + Cousins though :-(

                                                          The candle was a #6 sparkler :-)

                                                Waiting to open her present on Sunday :-)

                                                                         Pollies!!!

                                                            So many Polly pockets!!

                                                                    Enough to share!

                                      Miriam stuck all the balloons to the back of the fan :-P

Good morning! Wheat squares for breakfast! :-) Mom is slacking a little... right now we only have porridge 3-4x a week :-S

                                                                    Snack time! Grapes!

                                                  Hee hee I love Lydia's 'PEEEESE' face :-)

                                               Such a cutie - love this little rascal so much!

                                              Gotta love those eyes! Love him to bits!

                                               When did she get so big? Love her so much!

                                                     Let the bathroom reno begin!
        Easy for me to say as I sit in my chair and my hubby does all the work... (I feel quite useless actually...)

                                     Trying to figure out what the previous owners did... ???

Well, for one, they vented the hood fan into the wall...not even into the ceiling. Notice the terrible patch job on the ceiling - likely they had ice build up in the winter and it all melted in the spring :-S Then to 'fix' it they put a drop ceiling in... ??? I never used the fan cuz we couldn't figure out where it vented to... lol good thing!

         We now duct taped the vent  - we plan to renovate the kitchen later and put in something proper :-)

                                              The debris coming out of the bathroom door...

                                          What a mess!! He cleaned it all up too :-) Love him!

He climbed up in the attic and stomped on the bathroom ceiling... :-) We now have a vaulted ceiling in the bathroom! But it doesn't look that great... lol

Today Matthew is ripping out the tile around the bathtub. :-) Eventually we will have a completely renovated bathroom :-)