Two By Two

Well it is official!

We are proud to announce that we are expecting IDENTICAL TWIN GIRLS!!!!!!

I was SO expecting blue too. Even though this pregnancy has been a world of different thus far I figured it was just because it's 2 of them. So we told her that we wanted to know if she could get a good shot of the goods. So as she was doing measurements for Baby A (the doctors office calls her Maria) LOL she was SO not shy about it and gave a few great peaks and she said. Oh that's a girl! I said are you sure?????? She said I've been doing this for 21 years and I've learned not to call a gender unless I'm sure. So then we tried Baby B (Who the peri office is calling Isabelle) who was in some God awful position and she tried EVERYTHING to get her to give us a shot but she as being a total booger and just wouldn't do it. But once we got a look at the placenta she said well there is only one placenta so that tells you Isabelle's gender :) WOOOOT!

So now that the shock has worn off a bit, here's the rest of the appointment info that I wasn't coherent enough yesterday for.

Baby A (Maria) is measuring at 15 weeks 2 days and is approximately 4 oz in weight currently.
Baby B (Isabelle) is measuring at 16 weeks 4 days and is approximately 5 oz in weight currently.

The perinatologist said they don't worry about the size discrepancy until it gets to be about 10 days to 2 weeks. We're at about 9 days now. So they want to monitor us VERY closely.

The girls are laying one or top of the other kind of pancaked in. So depending on which way they are laying they do a whole bunch of kicking each other in the head. LOL

Because of my history a child with a genetic anomaly and congenital heart defect. They are going to be monitoring me even closer. Normally they see you every 4 weeks for a scan with twins. For me they'll be seeing me every 2 weeks for a while and then probably every week. They are going to do fetal echocardiograms on BOTH girls when we are between 20-22 weeks So in about 3-5 weeks.

I go back to the OB on April 28th (next Wednesday) for a regular prenatal and he'll do a scan in office just to lay eyes on the girls and get heart rates (they won't rely on Doppler with twins) and I think I start seeing him every 2 weeks after that.

I go back to the perinatalogist in 2 weeks (May 4th) for another scan. They want to measure their abdomens because Baby B's abdomen is measuring a little large and Baby A's is measuring a little small and that can be another sign of TTTS (Twin to twin Transfusion Syndrome) and they won't to monitor amniotic fluid levels and cord blood flow.

The peri said that because of what type of twins they are (Monochorionic/Diamniotic) they WILL deliver early. He wouldn't discuss how early though, just said that depends on the girls and how well they continue to grow as the time gets closer. But it's looking like they will most likely end up August babies.

On Thursday morning I went in to take my NCLEX-RN exam. When I took the NCLEX-PN to become an LPN I had the minimum number of questions before the computer shut off and although I was nervous for the next few days, I was pretty confident that I had passed. This time around, I had all 260 questions and was JUST as confident that I had failed. So the next morning when I signed on to the website to see my results I was fully expecting to see "FAIL" under the status. Much to my delight I saw....
So it's OFFICIAL. I am OFFICIALLY a Registered Nurse. WOOOOO HOOOOOOOO!

In other news.. the ultrasound has finally been scheduled (after much issue with the insurance company to get the level 2 ultrasound covered). We have our ultrasound (and find out the genders hopefully) on April 20th at 8am. We are VERY excited.

I'll do a better update after the ultrasound on the 20th.

I had an OB appointment today. It was my first time meeting this OB. Before this I had been seeing a midwife but being that I'm high risk it's better for me to be followed by an OB. So the OB decided that since this was his first time meeting me he wanted to get an ultrasound real quick so he could see the babies for himself.

He said they look great. Baby A is measuring right along with my due date at 13 weeks 6 days (I'm 14 weeks 2 days) and Baby B is measuring a considerable amount smaller at 13 weeks even. He was slightly concerned about the difference in size especially as he said it looks like they are sharing a placenta. He said that his machine isn't all that great but from what he can see there is only one. So what does that mean?It means that the twins most likely are monochorionic/diamniotic (MoDi). Which means they are in separate amniotic sacs but share a placenta. It also means that most likely the are identical! YAY!!!

He wants me to go in for a level 2 ultrasound as soon as the insurance does the pre-authorization and we can get the appointment set up to make sure they are in fact sharing a placenta. Sharing a placenta puts them at increased risk for TTTS (Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome) which can be a completely devastating condition resulting in losing 1 or even both of the twins if not monitored very very closely. So hopefully we'll have a Level 2 Ultrasound date tomorrow.

Baby A-- face shot


Baby B

I GOT MY AUTHORIZATION TO TEST!!!!!

April 8th at 8am I will be taking my NCLEX-RN.

I am SO EXCITED!

In other news.. I'm 14 weeks today. And I am already showing quite well... (please excuse the mess that is my bedroom.. I have not had the energy to put away the laundry)
We decided this past weekend that it was time to cut River's hair. He's only had 3 hair cuts in his life. The first was at 2 when we trimmed his hair to keep it out of his eyes and get the fly aways tamed. The 2nd was right before he turned 3 when he got lice from somewhere. We shaved his head that time. This time he is 4 years 2 months and we decided of our choice to shave his head. He hasn't been wanting us to brush it or wash it and he was looking raggedy so off it came. It will grow back quickly I'm sure and it will keep him cooler during Florida summers. (I'm trying to add pictures of the cut but blogger is being stupid)

Both boys are sick. They have strep throat. Awesome. They've been on antibiotics for about 3 days now and River is feeling a lot better but Journey still sounds pretty rough and isn't having very good nights right now. Other than being sick though Journey is starting to talk a lot more which is great. He tried to imitate a lot of the sounds and words we make which is a great start.

The big news for this update???

I AM OFFICIALLY IN THE 2ND TRIMESTER!!!! WOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!! I am 13 weeks pregnant today.

And with the 2nd trimester has come the freedom from the nausea (for the most part) and a bit more energy, which I am VERY thankful for. I still get nauseated if I go too long with out eating and have a bit of nausea first thing in the morning but it's short lived.

OK on to the boys.

River has been having some behavior issues with school. Acting up. Not listening. Back talking. He's been having behavior problems at home. So we talked with his pediatrician about it and (surprise surprise) she thinks ADHD. So we are taking him to Clay Behavioral for evaluation and a 2nd opinion. His appointment is tomorrow. He wont' be put on any medication even if he does have ADHD for at least a few years as it's not recommended for a child under age 6. So hopefully they'll be able to give us some techniques or some direction on how to help him calm down and focus. Other than his behavior, he's doing amazingly well. He loves school, loves learning. He is fully potty trained during the day, the night time is still a ways off as he sleeps so heavy but that's okay.

Journey is growing well and doing good. We are officially done with his Synagis injections. For those who dont' remember/ know what they are for... they are injections he gets every 28 days for RSV prevention. He gets them from October through April both last year and this year. But now that he is 2 he is out of the "danger age" for RSV and no longer has to get them. He is still getting speech therapy once a week and although we've seen an improvement he is still way behind on his expressive speech ( his talking) but he's ahead in his receptive (understand and comprehension of what's said). So who knows. He is so smart though, he knows 1/2 of his letters by sight, can recognized numbers up to 10, knows some of his shapes, and some of his colors. he know tons of animals and the sounds they make. He is such a love bug still and I LOVE it.

Our problem with him recently has been night time. He goes to bed easily but then an hour or 2 later he wakes up crying and about an hour after that he wakes up again and can't be consoled back to sleep. Doug has taken to sleeping on the couch with him so that he doesn't wake River (they are sharing a room now in preparation of needing the extra room for the babies) or I (he tends to want to play when he comes to bed with me). And we really need to break him of the habit but neither of us is willing to let him cry it out. Hopefully it's fixed before the babies come though.

So that's our update for now :)

I had an appointment today with my MW and for an ultrasound. The appointment was quick and so was the ultrasound. Both babies look wonderful. They are measuring 9 weeks 1 day which puts my due date at October 5th. But I will still deliver in September. Baby A has a heart rate of 178 and Baby B has a heart rate of 183 :) I go back April 7th for my next appointment.