The Not-So-Sexy Infertility Adventures of a Girl in the Big Apple

Monday, July 30, 2012

26 Weeks - Getting Youge

Wow, it's been a while since I posted last.  I keep meaning to put together a post but lately I've been much more interested in reading and commenting than writing.

Things are going really well in general.  I still feel pretty good, although my feet definitely get sore a lot faster these days when I stand for long periods of time.  Belly is really growing - weight gain of about (gulp!) 28 - 30 lbs already!  I am definitely going to be mid 40 lbs, maybe more, before this is all through.  Sleep is so-so.  I still get up 2 - 3 times in the night to pee, and lately I've been finding that around 6:30 / 7:00am I wake up and can't get back to sleep very easily.  Kind of a bummer because in theory I should be trying to get as much sleep as possible right now, but what can I do?

I had my last ultrasound appointment about a week ago, and all was well.  The babies were measuring a bit ahead of average at almost 2 lbs each.  No wonder my belly is big, I have 4 lbs of baby in there already!  I was pleased to see that they are pretty close in weight - a couple of ounces difference, but nothing too major.  My cervix was measuring nice and long at 3.7cm.  My biggest source of nervousness right now is preterm labor, so it was good to know that I don't seem to be in any imminent danger, but of course that can all change overnight.

Next up is my gestational diabetes test - I'm kinda worried about this one.  It's a lot more common with twins apparently, so really hoping I pass.  We shall see.

We hosted a baby shower at our apartment yesterday, and it was a lot of fun.  We did a very non-traditional, co-ed affair with lots of good food and good company.  My husband and I did a lot of cooking and prep and I think it turned out beautifully, although we were both pretty exhausted afterwards.  People were so sweet though - we got a lot of beautiful gifts already, and many more seem to be arriving via the registry.  Getting all of these gifts is making it all seem really real somehow.

It's going to be a very social couple of weeks - I have a good friend in town tomorrow, then my husband's work outing in the Hamptons this weekend, and then my mom comes to stay with me next week.  I'm looking forward to having her, although her level of anxiety about my pregnancy gets wearing at times.  If I don't call her back right away she instantly assumes something is wrong and starts worrying and fretting and calling again.  I really hope I don't end up like this with my own kids, but never say never.

I have decided for this reason that the first few weeks after the babies are born will just be for me, my husband, and a baby nurse.  After that we will have my parents come to stay, but no sooner - I think I will need a little time to adjust first before dealing with all of that stress and anxiety.  Sometimes my mother's idea of "help" is not so helpful!

I leave you with a couple belly shots from about a week ago - I deliberately chose the ones that are more flattering and where I look smaller.  Believe me when I say there are plenty where I look absolutely huge!









Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Happy and Sad

Reading everyone's posts the past couple of weeks I've had a lot of mixed emotions.  There have been amazing, wonderful stories from women who have finally given birth after years of waiting (congratulations TurtleMama, Sooz, and Jay!!!)  Seeing pictures of their beautiful babies and hearing the joy their 'voices' (underneath the exhaustion and craziness) is so wonderful.

And then there are the women who are still happily pregnant - furnishing nurseries, picking out names, posting their ultrasound pictures.  It warms my heart to read about every milestone passed, every dream for the future.

But it's the strong, wonderful women who are still in the trenches that really move me.  There were a couple of posts this week that broke my heart, and brought me back to those tense, awful days in my recent past.  I have no words of wisdom - all of you are veterans, and know how to navigate the landmines associated with IF.  I just wish each of you as much peace and strength as possible in the coming days, and the shortest point possible from here to getting your dream babies!

In other news, I've been very busy and productive preparing for the babies arrival.  I've pretty much picked out a crib, stroller, glider, and am now starting to research infant seats.  We are planning to throw a shower in a month or so, before I get too huge.  I've also lined up a baby nurse for the early weeks and am very far down the line with figuring out a nanny to help me during the week.  I was originally going to wait on that but have been told so strenuously by so many people how much I'm going to need help with twins that I've changed my mind.  I'm also in the process of ordering new windows and blackout curtains for the nursery, as well as childproofing all of our apartment windows. And finally, I'm designing a built-in closet in the nursery for all of their clothes & toys as well as cleaning out all of our existing closets to make room for all of the new gear.

So whew!  A lot going on in the past few weeks, but it's all good stuff.  My belly is growing steadily - I popped out another inch or two over the weekend, and am really starting to look like a twin mama now, I think.  I've been feeling really good, except for the last few days, where I've started to get a little tired and hormonal - I think this is maybe associated with a little growth spurt by the babes.

More to come soon, I hope everyone has a great 4th of July!