34 Weeks

We did it! We made it to 34 weeks. We made it past the 33 week mark when Elliot was born and I nearly had a nervous breakdown when pregnant with Hadley because I was so worried about her coming early. It's funny how perspective changes from pregnancy to pregnancy. With Elliot we were so thrilled to have made it to 33 weeks and viewed it as a huge accomplishment. With Hadley it would have felt like a total failure to have her at 33 weeks. This time, again, we viewed it as an accomplishment to make it to 33 weeks. For some reason I had in my head that these girls were going to come so early and so far they've definitely proven me wrong. I'll admit I'm glad they have stayed put but at the same time I just feel so done with being pregnant. It is truly miserable right now. I try not to complain too much and I don't want to seem ungrateful or like I take these kids for granted because I definitely do not but I've reached a point where there's just no denying how uncomfortable and miserable it is. And, yes, I do realize this is a blessing and special and precious and whatever other descriptors you want to throw out there. Still, it doesn't change the fact that I can't sit on the floor with my kids, I can hardly walk most days from my feet being so swollen, I can't lay down in bed with feeling intense pain or like I'm suffocating, I can hardly fit behind the wheel of the car, I can hardly wash dishes or do any of the other domestic tasks I'm used to doing. I hurt. There is pain - intense pain - in places I didn't know could feel such pain. I've stretched out to a size that just seems comical. Because of said stretching it's not hard to walk up stairs since Miss Baby A is hanging so low - my legs hit her bum when I walk up the stairs and I have to lift her out of the way to sit down. So, yes, I am blessed beyond belief and lucky but still in lots of pain and looking forward to these girls being on the outside!

Now, with all that being said I want to document my whirlwind of appointments from yesterday. It started out with a meeting at the diabetes center . My fasting blood sugars are now in the target range after increasing the amount of insulin I give myself at night. I was so hoping to avoid insulin but it's become a necessary thing. Surprisingly, sticking myself with a needle every night is easier than I expected it to be. With the exception of a few bad food choices my blood sugars are doing really well and they are all pleased with how I'm doing. We went over my postpartum instructions in case I don't make it to my next appointment. It's scheduled on June 7 & I honestly hope I do not make it to that appointment!!

Next, Petey met me at the OB office for what will hopefully be our last growth scan. It's kind of comforting to walk in and have the staff know you by name and just pull out your chart. Of course that means I'm there all.the.time. as well ;) I've really, really loved the ultrasound tech - she's personable and just fun to talk to. Our kids are pretty close in age so we have that to talk about as well. She commented on how chipper I seemed & that some of the twins moms she deals with at this stage are just plain witchy. When we got started she chuckled at how lopsided my stomach appeared. I will give here that one - it is funny! It's getting harder and harder to tell what is what on the screen since they are so much bigger. Both babies are breech and will likely remain that way which will mean a c-section for me. I'm not excited about that but it is what it is at this point. She had to actually stand up and lift Baby A out of the way to be able to see what she needed to see. Both babies are measuring a little small - about 32w5d but they're consistent with each other and have grown since last time. We estimated their weights at about 4lb. 9oz - give or take a half pound either way. It sounds so little but Elliot came home from the hospital at 4lb. 8oz. so it is a familiar size for us. Both babies had a good amount of fluid and were moving around. My cervix is measuring awesome at 5.45cm STILL. I was amazed since it was never that long to begin with when I was pregnant with Hadley.

My regular check up went well. My blood pressure was pretty low - 124/72. I've gained nearly 40 pounds since the beginning of this pregnancy. Here's to hoping it comes off as easy as it seems to have gone on. I don't feel like I've made any effort to gain that much weight - it's just sort of happened. I'm measuring in at 48cm. which would equate to 48 weeks pregnant with a single baby. (aka OUCH!) At this point babies are free to come whenever they want. So, if I go into labor they won't stop it. I'm so excited to have reached this point! Of course they would still require hospitalization at this point but it would hopefully just be for growing and not anything too life threatening.

After Petey and I had lunch together I headed back to the hospital for an NST in Labor and Delivery. For the first time the nurse was able to find the babies, hook up the monitors and leave. She gave me some apple juice to get them active and they actually stayed on the monitors the whole time! I was incredibly impressed at how easy that was. There were several contractions that showed up on there & they asked if I was feeling them which I definitely was. They weren't consistent or strong enough to jump into action though.

After all that I was very, very sore so I came home and napped. The little people had been at my parent's house for a few days and my dad brought them back yesterday afternoon. I missed them like crazy but enjoyed the silence that came with no children ;) Still, it was good to see them and have them excited to be home. Of course this morning they were already asking to go BACK to Mum-Mum & Papa's house. I guess I know where I rate...... ;)