4 months

The twins are now about 4 months old! Time is flying by!! We've been busy... been on a few little trips. In late September we went on a houseboat trip with my husband's family for 4 days. I would have never decided to take 3 month old twins houseboating, but my brother in law won this trip. I was a little apprehensive about going. But it ended up being really relaxing and fun. We had lots of extra hands too so that gave me a break!!



We went to Southern CA to visit my sister and family last weekend for about 4 days. We braved the airplane with our three kids!! It went ok! The babies were good. Other passengers were frequently commenting on how we have our hands full but many of them also offering to help :) We went to Disneyland one day while my parents stayed home with the twins, it was a fun day! Disneyland has a nice and comfortable baby center where I could pump :)

The babies had their 4 month appointment yesterday. The pedi was very pleased. Alec weighs 12lbs 8oz and Layla is 11lbs 13oz....both are about 24 inches. She said once they hit about 12lbs they should sleep most if the night (if you dream feed around 10pm-which we do). Alec is often sleeping thru the night from his 10pm dream feed until 8am! Layla wakes up around 5am on average. Napping is going ok... some days they nap really well. They really like to nap on their tummies. My pedi says this is ok since they hold their heads up so well and I'm right there for the nap. But at night we put them on their backs to sleep. They really love sleeping on their tummies :) but sometimes I worry since they are supposed to be on their backs. The pedi also says we can start solids when they are about 5 months old. She said to start putting them in their high chairs so they get used to sitting in there and watching us eat at meal times. When starting solids they should start to sleep deeper longer naps and can be more on a schedule during the day... they should sleep longer at night too :) Looking forward to that!!!


I went back to work last week. It's weird being back to work after 6 months off. I thought I would forget everything, but so far remembering it pretty easily like riding a bike! It's kind of nice to get away and get back to work... I work 24hr/weekly... so it's not too bad. I can often get more days off if we're not busy...so right now we're going to take advantage of that. My hubby is learning to care for them all on his own... this weekend will be his longest stretch with them since it's my first weekend back to work. Should be interesting!! ha ha!

Lots of coos and smiles these days.... it just melts my heart. Such a joy! The babies do notice each other sometimes and "talk" to one another. TOO CUTE! Alec is rolling over from back to tummy and tummy to back. But not very often yet. Layla hasn't rolled much... just tummy to back a couple times.



A year ago I was planning my FET of these little ones! So crazy all that has happened this last year. Such a joy and relief that our family is complete (at least we think? we still haven't decided about our one last CCS normal in the freezer- but I'll save that for another post!)

More pics :)

Thanks to my IVFC friends I finally got my camera out and have been taking pictures of my cuties!! We were supposed to have a photo shoot today (a free follow-up pic from our hospital package) but the lady cancelled. I had them all dressed up in these cute outfits my mom got them.... oh well, did my own little shoot instead :)

A few pics!

I need to be better about taking pictures!!! I don't have that many good ones! I have some on my phone, but I need to try to take pics more often with my normal camera. Took some tonight since it was big brother's fourth birthday!

2 month appt!

Our babies had their 2 month appointment this past Thursday Aug 18th at 9 1/2 wks old. Alec weighed in at 10lbs 4oz and Layla is 9lbs 15oz. Alec is also longer and his head is bigger than Layla. Their pediatrician thought they look very healthy and is very pleased :) We're very thankful too.

Today I was looking back on this blog to where I was at about a year ago today.... a year ago on Aug 13 we had our egg retrieval, and about this time last year we had just received our day 6 blast report and I was obsessing over the grades of our embryos and awaiting the CCS report. What a stressful time it was.... such uncertainty, some dissapointment over the grades of our embryos and the number of blasts we had after 19 fertilized (only 5 blasts!). And look where we are today... two beautiful babies... from grades 5BA and 4BB embryos. I was so jealous of those perfect 5AAs and felt like there was something wrong with our embryos.... but who cares now what the grades were. All that matters is that we have our beautiful healthy babies :)

I promise... pics to come in the next few days!!

Been busy....exhausted!

It's been busy here! I finally have a moment to write while both babies are asleep, big brother is asleep too! It's been especially busy since our oldest, Garrett, is out of school for two weeks since summer school ended and preschool hasn't started up again yet. Also our babysitter is out on vacation! So I am all on my own with three kids all day long! On top of that, I think the lack of sleep is really catching up to me... and I'm exhausted.

I am finding out that getting out of the house makes my day a little easier since the babies fall asleep in the car and usually stay asleep for a few hours in their infant carseats. Garrett also does well if we get out and do something. He goes crazy being home all day long. We get out to the park, the mall, the jumpy place, or maybe one easy errand. Getting out of the house keeps me sane too!!

Tomorrow is the babies 2 month appt (a week late). I'm curious to find out how much they weigh in at! They are definitely getting bigger... our little boy, Alec, seems to eat ALOT!! Nursing more often...and I think he feels heavier. When we give him a bottle at night he'll usually take 4 oz and sometimes wants more. Our little girl, Layla, takes about 3 oz... not usually 4. Alec is so grunty and gassy!! He farts ALOT! and stinky ones! I'm going to ask about this tomorrow! It seems like he's constantly farting! Such a boy!! ha ha!

I'm recovering pretty well. Seeing progress with my weight loss and staring to feel more like my normal self. Still have about 10lbs to lose. Trying to be careful not to go too fast with the weight loss since I am concerned it could affect my milk supply. Fitting into more of my normal clothes now. I know it takes time.... trying to be patient!! I'm still bleeding lightly on and off bright red. My OB says she'll do an ultrasound to check for any tissue or a clot. I was supposed to call last week if I was still bleeding.... I just keep ignoring it... hoping it will go away. Maybe I'll call tomorrow. Ughh. There's a possibility I would need a d&c..... if they see something in there. What a pain that would be! And the memories it would bring back since I've had two miscarriages with d&c. Ughh.

I'll update again in the next few days since we have their 2 month appt tomorrow... and I will add some pics since my IVFC buddies have been asking :)

1 month update

Yesterday, we had the babies 1 month appointment. Actually, it was at about 5wks of age, but all looked perfect! Babies are growing like weeds :) Layla is now 8lb 10oz and 20.25 inches long. Alec is 8lb 8oz and 21.75 inches long. They are breastfeeding well and it was a nice reassurance to know they are gaining well 90% breastfed. Sometimes breastfeeding can be so confusing cause you just don't know how much they are getting!! I walked out of that appointment feeling so thankful. Thankful these twins are healthy as an be, are feeding and gaining well. It's going sooo much smoother than I ever imagined with twins. A lot of my worries were around feeding and gaining weight....I really thought it would be much much more difficult. A big part of the success was that I was able to carry them to 37 wks and they were a good size for being twins. We really got off to a great start. I do think it helps being a second time mom. I'm more familiar with everything and have done it all before!!

My little boy seems to be the noiser of the two- often makes grunting noises and burps much more easily than the girl. My little girl takes forever to get a burp out.... such a polite little miss:) They are good babies, can be fussy at times but usually just want to be held! They rarely seem to be inconsolable, thankfully. We hope it stays that way!

My mom left about a week and a half ago (after being here since April!!!), so I am on my own!! AHHH! I think the biggest challenge is managing my oldest child on top having the twins. Our oldest, Garrett, wakes up early and wants breakfast and attention. Thankfully, my husband has been helpful and gets up with him! Garrett goes to pre-school 3 days a week, so on those days I have to get up and going by 830am. My husband has been a great helper here too- helping get the oldest ready and get the babies into the car. Although, it can be rushed to get out the door... it is nice to get home to a quiet house just with the twins and I for a few hours. It's also good for Garrett to get some socialization and run off some energy at school otherwise he drives me nuts being at home with him all day!!! I do have a babysitter that comes two afternoons a week as well.... so she usually plays with my oldest and I can get a break!! I've even been getting out of the house with the twins- going to the mall and running a few easy errands.

I now am doing lots of online shopping.....grocery delivery is a life saver!!!! Another great thing I found is amazon mom. It's a club on amazon and you get 30% off certain baby items. We get 30% off our diapers and wipes. You have to set up a subscription to get the 30% off... you set up a quantity and frequency for delivery which you can change at any time. The delivery is also free :) We really need this saving since we use about 16 diapers per day!!!

We had a photo shoot done when the twins were about 2wks old. The photos turned out just gorgeous!!! Here are just a few of them:

My due date!

Today was my due date for the babies!!! I can't imagine being pregnant to 40wks with twins, I would have been sooo uncomfortable and HUGE! The little ones are almost 3 weeks old now and things are going great. They both weighed 6lbs even at their one week appt and 6lb 8oz (boy) and 6lb 7oz (girl) at their two week appt.... so pretty much back to their birth weights. Their Dr is so pleased on how healthy they are for twins... no complications from being a twin gestation at all.... just perfectly healthy babies!! Such a blessing!
They are 90% exclusively breastfeeding. Feeding has been going way better than I ever imagined it to. I struggled to breastfeed my oldest but was able to after a month of hard work to get him to latch. So I was expecting much more challenges this time around especially with two! But they've both latched on well, I feed tandem majority of the time and it's going very smoothly. To get more sleep during the night we give them a bottle of formula around 11pm and since formula doesn't digest as easily they sleep longer.... they usually wake around 5am. I get up and feed them then- it takes about 45min to breastfeed and change their diapers. Then we sleep another 3hrs.... fortunately my mom is still here to deal with my oldest who wakes up pretty early. It's going to be a lot more challenging when my help leaves and I have all three kids to take care of. But it's nice to get the rest now while I can and while my body is still healing from major surgery.

Here's some photos from the hospital. I think this was when they were about 3 days old....

Update with pictures!

Thanks for all the congrats messages!!

We came home Friday afternoon and things are going pretty well. It's nice to be home, but we've always enjoyed our hospital stay....one on one time with my husband and the babies. Such a special time :) The c-section was ok.... but the spinal anesthesia was the strangest feeling- felt like I couldn't breathe and so restless. I asked the anesthesiologist to put me out!! But he didn't. Ughh! Last time I was alseep for the c-section so I didn't know how it would be being awake. I was soo glad when it was over and I had recovered... but it was very special to hear their first cries and get to see them just as they came out. My husband took a video and it is so neat to see. My little girl breastfed in the recovery room.... she just latched on so easily, she's been an easy one as far as feeding goes. My son has been more of a struggle, but he's breastfeeding ok. The babies never needed NICU time and all has looked healthy with them- such a blessing. Sleep is not the best, but could be worse...but maybe it hasn't caught up to me yet! Big brother has taken to our new family members surprisingly well (so far!) Overall, things went soo smooth and we are soo in love with our two new little ones.

Warning: Below is a picture overload!! :)



My HUGE belly on the operating table!!!























Big brother asleep beside his new brother and sister :)

Babies are here!!!

Hi!!! Just a quick update- Layla and Alec were born at 0956 and 0958 weighing 6lb 9oz and 6lb 7oz! I can't believe I had that much baby in my belly!!!!!! Both babies and momma are doing well! No nicu time needed!! They are in the room with us now :) So wonderful!!!
Will update more later and add some pictures!!!!!

The big day!!

Tomorrow is the big day we welcome our precious little twins into the world!! I can't wait to meet them!! My c-section is scheduled for 930am. I'm not nervous yet but I think tomorrow morning as we head to the hospital, I will be!! Praying that it's a smooth delivery and our babies are both healthy. I just can't believe I've made it full term with twins, especially after our scare at 27.5wks.

It's been a long road to get to this day. We started trying to get pregnant in 2005, and in 2006 did two IVFs which ended in BFNs. That RE had no hope for us but fortunately another RE locally did, and we had success with our son in 2007. We never thought trying for a sibling would be so heartbreaking.... we had two miscarriages and another BFN at our local RE. It was a sad and lonely time.... thankfully CCRM gave us renewed hope for one last try for a sibling or two. We took a huge leap of faith to travel to CCRM and I'm so thankful we did!

It's so crazy to think about our embryos created on Aug 13, 2010 and transferred on October 14, 2010 are our little ones that we will meet tomorrow! I still don't think it's hit me! I'm really having a baby.....two babies!! It's so surreal!

I hope to post pictures to the blog... will update as soon as I can!!!
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers throughout our journey!

35 weeks!!

I turned 35 weeks yesterday!!! I can't believe I've made it this far with twins and after the scare I had at 27.5 weeks!! What a relief it is! These babies might not even have NICU time!! It would be wonderful to take them home with us:) At my OB appt this past week we set a c-section date for June 13!!!!! I will be 37wks 2 days along on that day. We'll see if I make it!!

I've been doing pretty well considering my belly is HUGE!! I tire out easily if up on my feet much. But no swelling at all. Blood pressure is great. I do get lots of braxton hicks if up a lot. I am on my feet quite a bit more now than I was from 28wks-32wks. We feel like I"m in a safer place now so we are a little more relaxed about things. I still use my wheelchair if we want to go out shopping. I just can't walk very far anyway!! It's exhausting!

Sleep is going better since I started taking pepcid twice a day. Makes a world of a difference. The heartburn was to a point where I was miserable, but now, it's very very mild if at all. I toss and turn some at night due to the discomforts of my huge belly and get up quite a bit to pee. I also have lots of dreams about going into labor and sometimes wake up not sure if it is a dream or not!! Overall, sleep isn't bad...could be better but not bad.

My next appointment is on Wednesday. They will do a growth scan, I can't wait to find out how much they are estimated to weigh. I know they are getting bigger... cause my belly is getting overstretched and I even have some stretch marks (started noticing about 2wks ago). They are very light, and I think they will fade, but I just hope it doesn't get worse!

I'm getting nervous about how feeding is going to work out with two babies!! I had trouble breast feeding my son, so I met with a lactation consultant. I think it took me about a month to get him to latch well! I had a few private sessions with this lactation consultant and just thought she was amazing. I gave her a call this week to talk about the twins. I'm pretty sure I'll set up some private sessions with her this time around too.

Here's a picture of my huge belly at 34 weeks!!

32 weeks!!

I am now 32 weeks 2 days along!! At my appointment last week the babies estimated to weigh 3lbs 14oz (girl) and 4lbs 4oz (boy)! My belly is now getting huge and is much like a full term singleton now!! Sleeping is getting more difficult... I find myself shifting from side to side during the night. Heartburn has been worse too, the other night it was soo bad!!! But last night I slept really well.... so that was a big relief.

I am hopeful I'll make it to 34 weeks and keeping two week goals for now. Right now 36 weeks seems too far away with how big my belly is getting, but if I can get to 34 maybe 36 won't be so bad. At my last appointment the peri didn't feel like she needed to measure my cervix since at this point they don't measure the cervix just monitor for symptoms of pre-term labor. I did have my cervix measured for peace of mind...and it has shortened to 1.7cm (so not sure if I got the peace of mind I was looking for)... but the peri wasn't concerned. Just keep my activity restrictions and monitor for signs of pre-term labor (regular contractions, bleeding, cramping, increased discharge, etc).

Bedrest is going much better than I thought it would, it's really not so bad. I'm not on strict bedrest so I get up in the morning for a shower, get up for meals, go to appointments, even putz around the house a little bit. We're renting a wheelchair so we can go out shopping every once and a while. Today we went to babies R us to return some items and also stock up on more baby stuff I didn't get at my shower.

Speaking of showers- I was supposed to have a work baby shower while I was in the hospital. It was a bummer that I missed that one, I was really looking forward to it and I know my coworkers were too. They did bring all of their gifts to my house, including an adorable diaper cake. I love diaper cakes.... they are too cute! I've always wanted to make one for someone, I hope to someday!



I had another shower this weekend. My good friend flew out from North Carolina to help throw the shower.....so sweet of her. She LOVES throwing showers and did an adorable job on the decor. The theme was pink and blue. It was a fun day!

Appt Update- Good News!

Yesterday I had an OB appt and GOOD NEWS.... my cervix lengthened to 2.5cm (was 1cm upon admission to the hospital)!!! She didn't disturb the cervix to check for dilation but it looked closed on the u/s and definitely didn't look worse.... but much better. Actually the funnel at the top looks a lot smaller. My OB thinks the bedrest is what has helped. She wants me to continue to bedrest. I was thankful b/c I was just hoping it wasn't worse and they might re-admit me to the hospital. Ughh!! So good to know the bedrest efforts seem to be helping!!! She did give me a prescription for a medication to stop contractions if they start happening frequently. But so far all has been quiet!! My next appt is Monday at the perinatologist.

I'm home!!

I did get discharged home from the hospital yesterday!!! It is nice to be home, so tempting to get up though!! There's so much to do- especially since we just moved.... it's so hard! I want to get all organized!! But I know I will get in trouble if with my husband if I do anything....and of course I don't want any regrets either. My in-laws are here right now. They are helpful with my son and have done some unpacking and organizing throughout the house, but I know my mom will be more on top of it when she comes on Wednesday. My mom is super organized :) I feel like she'll take better care of me too. Can't wait for her to get here!!

My next appt is Thursday at my OB. So it will be interesting to see if she scans my cervix!! I wonder what it is doing??? Will update if anything new happens and how my OB appt goes Thursday!!

Go home??

Yesterday morning when the perinatologist visited me he said I may be able to get to go home today! They had me on motrin around the clock to keep my uterus calm, but if it stays calm without the motrin (which they stopped yesterday) then I can go home. The nurses check my contractions and monitor the babies about every 6 hours. My uterus has been remained calm :)

The peri says the fetal fibronectin swab is still very accurate with twins (5% negative error rates vs 1% negative error rate with singleton). So there's a very good chance I won't have these babies for about 2wks from the swab (they did the swab Wed night). So that's very reassuring. He says that there's 50% chance I'll have the babies before 34wks...so 50% chance I'll have them after 34wks :)

They're not fully certain how to treat a shortened cervix... bedrest is not proven but it's all they know to do. There's other options like vaginal progesterone to help the cervix(but I may be too late gestational wise for that and it doesn't work the same with twins), there's a cerclage but that's also not as successful with twins and I am also too far along for that. He sounded pretty confident I'd go home today if my uterus was quiet and no other symptoms- cramping or bleeding, etc. I will still be on bedrest, but it would be nice to be home :)

Will update later today!!

Here's a recent belly pic from earlier this week:

Admitted!!

I was admitted to the hospital on Wednesday evening after my 4pm appt at the perinatologist. My cervix is now at 1.0cm!! The peri sent me straight to the hospital for monitoring and bedrest. I am not showing other signs of labor- so that's good. The fetal fibronectin swab was negative- reassuring to get a negative swab indicating I shouldn't go into labor in the next 2wks(although possibly not as accurate with twins).

The babies both look great... they did a growth scan quickly before I left to the hospital... both babies are estimated to be 2lbs 9oz. The peri thinks I could be admitted for about 2wks, but all depends on how things are going. The Dr's keep reminding me that it is great I am almost 28wks (turn 28wks Sat) instead of 24wks or less. Babies have a great chance of doing well even at 28wks with low chance of long term complications- especially when comparing to 24wks. Yesterday morning I was checked internally and the peri says I am 2cm dilated!! Ughh. She was even considering letting me go home if I wasn't dilated. She says I'll at least stay another week, probably two but maybe could go home in a week if my cervix hasn't changed.

I haven't updated on how this all unfolded in the last weeks... so at 25wks I went to the peri's office and had a cervical scan and my cervix had changed from about 4.0cm to a 3.1cm. I was concerned about the change in just a week but he wasn't at all. He said anything over 2.5cm is great and not to worry. So I went on my way!! The next week at 26wks I went to my OB and she scanned the cervix which still was 3.1cm but was concerned about the shortening from the previous 4.0cm. She knew I have a job on my feet (I am a nurse- work part time about 24hrs/week). So she put me on disability. I was quite upset, not sure what to think about the conflicting opinions of the peri and my OB. I wasn't ready to leave work! I stressed over it that entire day, called HR to learn about my leave and how all of that works, etc. I called my husband's cousin who is an OB and got her take on my situation. She didn't seem concerned since my cervix was long and closed at 3.1. She said I could still work too. The next morning I called my OB again and talked it over and decided to go with their recommendations and go off work. It wasn't an easy decision especially when they peri said everything is fine.

So I went off work that week and rested more. My OB wanted me to be on modified bed rest which she described for me as just "taking it easy" I could still take care of my son, go to the store, etc. But try to keep my feet up and rest as much as I could. And no work!! I followed those instructions and also kept the peri's opinion in mind so maybe did a little more than my OB would have wanted.

At 27wks 4 days is when I went to the peri and found out my cervix had now shortened even more and here I am at 27wks 6 days laying in my hospital bed. Ughhh! I do feel like I am having a lot less braxton hicks contractions with the bedrest. They monitor me every 8hrs for one hour to check on the babies and measure my contractions. The most contractions I've had is 2 in 1 hr... which is just braxton hicks and totally normal. I got both doses of the steroid shots which help the babies significantly if born in the next couple days.

My inlaws are visiting now to take care of my son and help unpack/organize the house.
So thankful for their help! My mom is coming up in about a week and will probably stay for a long time since no matter what if I go home I will be on bedrest and need the help. We have other offers for help so maybe they can give my mom a break at times and she can go home for a week or so at a time. (she lives about 10hrs drive or 1hr flight away in Southern CA).

So for now- I just wait a week here in the hospital. Glad I have my laptop and internet!!! It's so nice to be able to stay connected on the internet. Can still do my online billing, etc. Can still shop online :) Check on the blogs, post on the forums. Got my phone here- so I've had some nice telephone chats with friends/family. Hasn't been too bad yet although the first day/half I was very emotional about staying here. I guess I will take it day by day and week by week and get through it. I've seen some very encouraging stories of similar situations with cervix shortening/dilating and most have been able to continue to carry for at least another 4-8wks. So that gives me lots of hope!!!

Will keep you all posted :) Thanks for your thoughts and prayers...

26 weeks

26 weeks!! Time is flying by! My belly feels big, but not too uncomfortable yet. I am sleeping fine and doing ok! I still need to add another belly pic! I'll try to take one today and add it :)

At the end of my 24th week I had a growth scan of the little ones.. the babies looked good! Baby B (boy) was 1lb 10oz. Baby A (girl) was 1lb 7oz!! They have checked my cervix twice and it's staying long and closed so they aren't concerned. If it's long at closed at almost 26wks then the risk is low that there will be cervix issues.

As far as baby planning- we finally got our stroller!! So excited about it because for a double stroller it doesn't feel huge at all.... it's the Baby Jogger- City Select model. I like that it can hold two infant car seats. You can arrange the seats in many different configurations too!! It also has a ride along accessory you can buy for an older child to ride on standing. Although our son walks (he is 3.5yrs!) but we often still use a stroller cause he can be slow or gets tired.

I picked out our baby bedding and bought it on sale at Pottery Barn Kids. Started a registry a few weeks ago since I will have a work baby shower and a friend/family baby shower in the next month. Even though we have lots of stuff from our son- we'll need two of some things! And we do need girl clothes!!! :) Not that I haven't been shopping for her!! I feel sort of guilty just shopping for her!! Now and then, I've found something new for our little boy too! But my son has tons of cute clothes for him to wear!

Here's a pic of baby boy last week: (didn't get a good one of baby girl)

Update 24 weeks!!

Hi there! Gosh it's been a month since I've updated!!! Things are going well. I've had lots of ultrasounds (one about every week) mostly to check for heartblock at a more high risk/fancier clinic(due to my sjogrens antibodies which can pass to the baby and possibly cause heartblock). No heartblock has been seen for either baby, but if it does start to show they can give me steroids to treat it. I think the risk is <5% of even having the heartblock, but they are checking just in case. At 22 weeks I had an echo of the babies hearts- all looked good there too!

Today I had my 24 week OB appt, all looked good with the babies, but the top of my cervix is funneling!! So my OB did the fetal fibronectin swab. But my cervix is long and closed at 3.5cm. So she's not too concerned just something to watch. I just got a call that the fFN swab came back negative so that's also reassuring. She says we'd be more concerned about the funneling if my cervix was shortening... I am going to the high risk clinic on Thursday so they will check out the cervix too. I will also be having a growth scan there and the weekly heartblock check. Glad I can get things checked out again and another opinion.

My OB did say to take it easier with the funneling... I have to admit I have been doing a lot this weekend!! We are in the process of moving so I've been packing boxes and cleaning the house so it can be viewed. We are excited about our move though! We're currently renting our home. (we used to be homeowners but sold our home about 2 yrs ago for various reasons). Our lease is about up, so we looked and found something with much more space. Our house we are in right now is pretty small although an old adorable craftman's style home that's been renovated and fully upgraded.... but we really think we'll appreciate double the space at the new home! I just need to keep mind of taking it easy. We have a moving company doing the big move on April 4th, also have friends and family coming to help finish packing and unpacking....so I am able to not over do it!!!!

I've been reading the Dr Luke book that my OB recommended for twins. I'm on track with her weight gain recommendations. She advises that you gain 25 lbs by 20 wks for a twin pregnancy (12lbs for a singleton). I've gained about 30lbs at 24wks so I am on track. Target for 28 weeks is 38 lbs (20lbs for singleton) and total weight gain of 40-56 lbs (25-35lbs for singleton). Research has been shown with this pattern of weight gain that the results are not only bigger birthweights and longer gestations, but also less extra weight postpartum!! By gaining most of your pregnancy weight by 28 weeks, then slowing down from 28 weeks to delivery, much of the weight gain is mobilized, so that there is less to lose in the months after delivery. Pretty interesting, huh?

Dr Luke recommends a variety of supplements in her book. I am following her advice and have been taking all of them for the last few weeks (mag, ca, zinc, vit d, c, e, fish oil). There are various benefits to the supplements but one thing I was most interested in was the prevention of pre-eclampsia. I started to have pre-e at the end of my last pregnancy, so with twins I know I am more at risk.... if these supplements can help...I'm all for it!

Hope to update soon with another belly pic!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!! We had a special treat for Valentine's today- we got to see our babies!! It was my 20wk "anatomy scan". Both babies looked perfect and they did confirm that it is definitely a boy and a girl!!! My DH and I went to a nice Valentine's breakfast (without our son- so very relaxing :)) before the ultrasound- it was a nice date:)

I was supposed to get an echo of their hearts today but they said at 22wks is better. So I'll go back for that... the reason I thought I was getting an echo on their hearts was because I have "sjogrens" an autoimmune disorder which can cause heartblock in the babies. (It can be treated and is pretty rare- 1-2%) but after talking to the Dr today (we were at a high risk pregnancy type ultrasound place) she said I was having the echo because these babies were conceived via IVF. There is a greater risk for heart defects, which they do not know why. But the risk is still very low (I think 1-2%). This is a new national recommendation which started last year.
But since I have the "sjogrens" the Dr recommends I see them once a week to monitor for heartblock (the sooner they catch it the better and I would be on steroids to treat it). Looks like I'll be getting lots of ultrasounds! They also measured my cervix since it's a twin pregnancy. My cervix was long (4cm) so all looked good there :) A relief to know everything is looking good.


Here's a couple of pictures from today's ultrasound as well as my 20wk belly picture!!!