Maternity Updates/Notes

I have been blogging a lot about pregnancy and the twins...and some of you might want to rip your eyeballs out. However, with sticking to one of my goals of this blog, I want to document life experiences so I can look back and happily experience them again. While I may not want to relive all the pains and unpleasantries of pregnancy, but I would like to highlight moments so I can reminisce when I feel like it. :)

I feel fortunate that I have had a pretty decent pregnancy. At first (well, for the first 5 months...not 3 like everyone kept insisting), I was extremely sick. I couldn't keep anything down and I lost about 9 lbs. I was concerned for the babies' sake, but I started drinking 'Ensure' protein drinks like a 90 year old woman. I honestly liked them. I would eat plain carbs like bagels with cream cheese, plain pasta with butter and cereal -- and then drink the Ensure drinks and take prenatal vitamins. The doctors said to eat whatever appealed to me and I did just that. 

I also feel as though my pregnancy has been pretty decent because I have stayed active. I haven't been running or doing yoga or pilates or anything -- I've just constantly been walking and stretching. I could be stretching more, but at least I have kept up with the walking. The doctors highly suggest at least 2 twenty minute walks each day at this later stage in pregnancy - but prior to being 33 weeks, I walked much more than that, several miles at a time. I think staying active has really helped with a lot of my aches and pains. My hips, heels and tailbone especially. 

One of the bloggers I follow is also pregnant - I made her peanut butter cookies about a month or so ago. Remember her?? Well she did a cute blog post about cravings, weight gain, baby names and other maternity tidbits, so I did a similar one. No pics or anything fun, just simple notes here.

Cravings: EVERYONE keeps asking if I have any cravings -- specifically "weird" pregnancy cravings. Honestly, I haven't at all. I have a serious sweet tooth (not pregnant), so I have been eating a lot of ice cream, dark chocolate and fruit…mostly apples and any kind of berries. I have also been eating bananas as I heard potassium helps with swelling. As I have progressed in my pregnancy, my feet have started to swell.. Jim suggested I sleep with two pillows under my feet last night, and I must say that it seriously helped.

Weight gain: I am now at the point where I go to the doctor on a weekly basis (on Friday afternoons) and last week I was up exactly 40 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight. The doctors suggest not to gain much more than 5-10 more lbs, but there are of course TWO BABIES in there! And this is when they really pack on the pounds. As of Friday, Baby A weighed 4.3 lbs and Baby B weighed 4.1 lbs, in the 35th and 31st percentiles, respectively.  To be honest, I thought twins were born around 4 lbs, so I was thrilled to hear they already weighed that much. I am hoping they stay in my belly another 5 weeks or so, so we'll see how much they weigh they are born!

Names: Yes - we have chosen names for the twins, but we’re keeping them to ourselves until they are born. To drop a few hints, we like Irish baby boy names that are short (no more than 2 syllables), we like family names and also names that have the same beginning sound to them. For example, I like that Jim's Dad and his twin brother are "Tim and Tom". So cute and simple.

Maternity clothes: I thankfully have two staple black work pants and one khaki pair. I also have a few dresses and skirts which are great. Some of the skirts are so cute and comfortable -- and can be dressed up or down. I also have a couple pairs of jeans, but even with the elastic band, pants are becoming uncomfortable at this stage. Thankfully it's warming up in DC because flowy dresses and skirts are perfect for me right now! Now I just need a pedicure to complete my spring look. ;)

Pregnancy Issues: Now that I have talked about all the positives and fun stuff, I must address the issues and complications. No need to worry, all three of us are doing great! Both babies are rolling about and kicking up a storm. Jim thinks it's so crazy to see my belly move all over the place. He actually thinks it's crazy to see me with a huge belly. First and foremost - the ankle swelling, as I mentioned before. A few weeks ago, I looked down at my feet and noticed they were huge...my right foot especially. I was really nervous, so I asked my doctor about it. Both docs said it was normal, just monitor a few things like my blood pressure to make sure we weren't headed to preeclampsia or any other health issues. So far, my blood pressure and other things have been completely normal, so we are all good to go. I have had a few pains and a few contractions but again, all under control! 

My next weekly appointment/non stress test is Friday, so we will check in again soon! So many more appointments with multiples, but worth it. Happy to hear A and B are growing into strong little men in there!

xo,

Shaz