In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. ~ Proverbs 3:6

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Letters to my Babies - Week 18


We are so thankful for this pregnancy! After sharing our journey through infertilty on the blog, I knew I wanted to log our newfound 40 week journey of pregnancy on the blog as well. Not knowing if I’ll ever be able to experience pregnancy again, I have chosen to log our pregnancy by writing occasional letters to our babies. The letters will keep my readers posted on how we are doing each week, but the letters will also be something that our little ones can go back and read, as a reminder of how much he or she was loved from the very beginning of their existence. You can read previous weeks by clicking on the following posts: Week 5, Week 7, Week 9, Week 12, Week 13, Week 15, Week 16.

I’m a little over 18 weeks today.  My doctor tells me that 37 weeks is considered full term for twins, so I am considering this week to be my halfway point of pregnancy.  The pregnancy is going just as it should be.  Nothing abnormal, so I have no complaints.  Since I haven’t been to the doctor in a couple of weeks, I do not have an update on how the two of you are doing.  I feel as though my boys are doing just fine though.  My body is certainly showing evidence of the two of you growing inside of me.
My baby bump is getting quite large and uncomfortable, just as it should be with twins.  The extra weight makes for swollen legs and ankles.  I’ve been dealing with the pregnancy side effect of edema for several weeks now, and it is only getting more noticeable as time passes.  I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to go up a shoe size in the next few weeks, as most of my shoes are already too tight.  I may also have to start wearing my wedding ring on my pinky finger too, as I am having a hard time getting my ring off of my finger at night.  My blood pressure is always perfect when it gets checked, and I am showing no signs of preeclampsia (often occurring in a small percentage of pregnant women after their twentieth week), meaning that all of my swelling is just edema and is a perfectly normal symptom of pregnancy. 

Other than the swelling, my back is sore most nights as well.  Again, it’s completely normal, and I have no complaints.  I don’t plan on being in bed all day, so as long as I am on my feet and staying active, a sore back will be a part of my pregnancy.  I treat the sore back by simply taking a warm bath at night, before kicking my feet up on the couch with the heating pad on low, and then getting a nice back rub from Daddy each night.  It seems to be doing the trick.
I’m also getting over a sinus infection that tried to conquer my life last week.  Let’s face it, pregnancy makes me feel as though I have a cold nonstop.  Last weekend, I found myself at med check at 4:00 a.m. desperate for an antibiotic.  Like most pregnant women, I really didn’t want to take anything, but when Tylenol Sinus and the traditional sinus rinses were not giving me any relief, I found myself at the doctor.  Unfortunately, it took the entire week for the antibiotic to kick in and relief was not instantaneous.  I’m hoping to stay sinus infection free the rest of my pregnancy.

Cravings are also a common pregnancy symptom and until last week, I had not had any pregnancy cravings.  However, last weekend I made Daddy go out and get me Tim’s Donuts early on a Saturday morning.  I just had to have a donut.  That’s the only craving I’ve had so far.  Surprisingly, I haven’t been super hungry in this pregnancy and often have to remind myself it is time to eat.  I keep wondering when I will be the pregnant lady who eats everything in sight.  It hasn’t happened yet.  I’m definitely not getting the 3,800 calories my doctor recommends for twins.  I am, however, getting a balanced diet and do not appear to be having any issues with gaining weight in this pregnancy.  At the rate my belly is growing, I’ll be looking like a giant hippo in no time.
Less than two weeks until our next appointment and ultrasound.  I’m anxiously waiting to see your growth at our 20 week appointment.  There’s much to do for your arrival until then.  We have been diligently working on the nursery since we found out we were having boys.  By 20 weeks, we may just have the entire nursery complete.   We’ve also been seriously discussing names for you, knowing that you can’t be called Baby A and Baby B forever.  We have a few things in mind, and by 20 weeks, I hope to have official names for you.  Until then, know that you are more loved than you could ever imagine.  With each passing week, Mommy and Daddy get more excited about your arrival and can not possibly put into words how very blessed we are to be given the gift of carrying two precious baby boys into this world.  We love you both so much!

Love,
Mommy

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