12 Weeks Pregnant!

Yesterday I made it to 12 weeks pregnant!! Whoo hoo! I can't believe how fast time is flying by! I just wanted to post a 12 week pic since I haven't posted a baby bump pic since week 6! I've grown a lot in 6 weeks...some people say that I look 4-5 months pregnant already...especially since this is my first pregnancy. At 7 weeks I remember thinking it was crazy that I was starting to show already and I even felt like the way I walked had changed...then when I found out I was having twins it all made sense! I've seen the biggest change in the last 2 weeks. After 10 weeks they started growing like crazy! So here I am at 12 weeks...with my first pair of maternity pants I recently purchased (love them, so comfy)!

I feel great! This pregnancy has been super easy so far! I've hardly had any morning sickness...as long as I eat every 3 hours or so. I really didn't experience any nauseousness at all until my tenth week...I had a few days of being slightly nauseous during that week...and yesterday I got really nauseous all of a sudden and realized I hadn't eaten for 4-5 hours. Other than that, no morning sickness! 

Some things I've been experiencing but had no idea they were associated with pregnancy until now...being bloated!! Apparently digestion slows down so my body can better absorb all the nutrients...resulting in me being bloated. Had no idea! Another thing...sore hips! I guess my hips are stretching and moving so it feels like I've been working out and I'm really sore. Ovary Cramping is another one I didn't know was a symptom...I've had that from the very beginning! The last few weeks I haven't noticed it as much. 

I've had lots of food cravings! First and foremost....pickles and more importantly-pickle juice! Mmmm...there's just something about it that I crave! This has been the past 2 weeks or so. I've also been craving fruit...pretty much throughout the whole pregnancy. Pears and melons to be exact...probably because of their high water content. I also craved red meat temporarily early on in my pregnancy...probably when my body was trying to get my blood volume up. Sweets, Olive Garden Salads, and cheese are a few others. I like to think of myself as a pretty disciplined person, but when it comes to these cravings...it's REALLY hard not to eat sweets! I started eating fruit when I would get these cravings and that seems to help temporarily! 

Oh, and one more thing...I think I might have felt Baby A doing flips recently. I felt it Saturday and Sunday this past weekend. The feeling is close to where we found Baby A during the ultrasound last week and since Baby A is measuring almost 2 weeks ahead...it's possible. It's a feeling I've never felt before and happened about 4 times Saturday, and twice Sunday. Both times I was on a walk. :) :) :)

Ultrasound #2...Fraternal or Identical?

So last time I blogged I mentioned that we were going to tour a birth center and that we would find out if the twins were fraternal or identical...well our appointment was yesterday! We had been looking forward to it and couldn't wait until Wednesday came! The birth center was an hour away with traffic, but we were so excited about the appointment it seemed like we were driving for FOREVER!! Finally we arrived (5 minutes late because MapQuest had said it would only take 45 minutes...) and went in and had to fill out some forms. Then we took a tour. The rooms were much smaller than the last birth center we visited (Nativiti) and the waiting area was much smaller too. It was nice, but when compared to Nativiti not quite as nice. Then we went into the waiting room and talked with one of the midwives. She seemed really nice, but afterwards Adam and I both had the same feeling...we just didn't feel right about the whole thing. I don't really know how to explain it, but we just didn't get the same feeling that we felt at Nativiti with the wonderful midwives there.

So....we decided to look into other options. I made an appointment on May 19 with a doctor that came highly recommended from the midwives at Nativiti, Dr. Gerald Bullock. He is an older doctor...in his 70's, and has tons of experience delivering twins vaginally. He's also more old-fashioned and is not so quick to jump to all the medical interventions they do these days. The reason I didn't want a hospital birth was because of all the interventions they try to push on you...and a lot of doctors these days will automatically set you up for a c-section if you are having twins. They won't even let you try to birth them naturally. Also, my mom had a mini-stroke with the birth of my sister, and that is the only birth they used petocin on...so I just really want to find a doctor who is on the same page as me and won't force those interventions on me. I still might consider a home birth, but I feel like this is the way I'm being lead right now.

Ok, on to more exciting news...the ultrasound! The birth center we went to said they couldn't do the type of ultrasound we needed so they recommended SonoMasters. We called them as soon as we left the birth center and they were able to get us in that same day! We were sooooo excited!! We love ultrasounds...I think its becoming an addiction, lol! The place was really nice and the ultrasound techs were so sweet. They zoomed in on the first baby they found (Baby B) and it was so neat to see! Last time we had an ultrasound (3 weeks ago) we could barely see anything. This time it actually looked like a baby. Baby B was kicking its little legs and moving all around. It was the cutest thing ever! Then they moved down to find Baby A. Well we thought Baby B had grown a lot...we were shocked when we saw Baby A...it was HUGE compared to Baby B. Later on we found out that it was probably just because Baby B was deeper in my uterus so it just looked like Baby A was a lot bigger...although Baby A is measuring a week ahead of Baby B...but that's typical with twins. I was 11 weeks 3 days yesterday and Baby A is measuring at 13 weeks while Baby B is measuring at 12 weeks...so they are both ahead of schedule. And no, my dates are not wrong because she said in all other areas I'm measuring at 11 weeks...they are just big! So baby A was moving around a lot too, mainly moving its arms around...and it almost looked like it was sucking its thumb. :) Their heart rates came down a lot...3 weeks ago they were both 182bpm. Yesterday they were both 162bpm.

So the ultrasound tech called in another tech to see if the twins are identical or fraternal. She said because of the septum she saw, and the two placentas (one of them was still developing so harder to see)...they are fraternal!! She said that's the best kind to have! That's what I was thinking this whole time so it wasn't a surprise to me...we are so happy! So we are supposed to go back in a month or so and find out the genders...and get a 4D ultrasound...they do them earlier for twins. I can't wait!!!

Here's 2 videos that Adam captured during the ultrasound. The video where you see just one of the babies moving around...that's Baby B. You'll see in the video of them both how much bigger Baby A looks...and you can see them both moving around at the same time if you notice Baby B in the upper right part of the screen. Also, if you look really closely...and quickly, you can see the flutter of their hearts throughout the videos. Soooo neat!! I just love them so much and can't wait to meet them!!

Our First Baby Appointment and Ultrasound

After finding out we were pregnant, I began looking at my options immediately. Hospital, home birth, birthing center...what to do!? I decided to look into birthing centers in Houston...I wanted a more natural birth...without all the medical interventions that could lead to complications. I found a birth center in The Woodlands called Nativiti birth center and Adam and I took a tour. It was fabulous! The mid-wives were so personable and it was close to a hospital just in case. The rooms looked like hotel rooms...so cozy. Each room had a huge tub for a water birth. They let you eat and drink during labor (a huge plus for me since I am always hungry, lol), they are trained to know if things are not progressing normally and you need a doctor's help, you can keep the baby with you at all times, and you can leave soon after the baby is born instead of being stuck at the hospital for a few days. They say that doctors are needed for surgeries (c-sections), but if you are healthy and have a normal pregnancy then you don't need a surgical doctor to give birth naturally...makes sense!

So we set up an appointment with the midwives at Nativiti. We were so excited when the day finally arrived! It was a 1.5 hour appointment where we could ask questions and discuss the whole process. The first thing they did was take my vitals and weight...all good. I had gained maybe 4 pounds! At this time I was 8 weeks and 3 days pregnant. Then they took us to the ultrasound room...we were totally surprised by this as I was told during the tour that they wouldn't do one until I was at least 12 weeks. We looked at each other with excitement!! She oozed the gel on my belly and put the wand down. She found the baby right away...it was amazing to see. I think I said..."Wow, there really is a baby in there!" Adam and I both teared up a little. The baby was moving around a little and we could see the heart beating. Then she let us listen to the heartbeat...that was so cool! It was fast...I think 182 bpm. Then she said she would look around to make sure there was only one baby. She asked if twins ran in our families. I immediately said no and asked Adam if it ran in his. Before he could answer she said, "Guys...I see another one!"

What?!? My hand flew up to my mouth and I gasped. Adam jumped up from his chair and peered into the screen, while squeezing my hand. I got goosebumps. I had ALWAYS wanted twins and actually teased Adam all the time about it. I NEVER thought it would happen to me!! Come to find out afterwards...twins do run in my family. Actually, triplets too! Crazy!

Not much to see at 8 weeks but they are there! We are sooooo excited!!!! The only downfall to having twins is that we cannot birth them at Nativiti...they don't do twins there. Bummer. I was disappointed about that, but the awesome news of having twins far outweighs that disappointment. Back to square one.

Anyways, here's how we announced our pregnancy on Facebook:

Me at 6 weeks! <3

And you can go here to see how we announced the twins:

http://www.local15tv.com/news/features/local-15-news-at-noon/stories/local-author-shares-details-new-book-515.shtml?wap=0#.Uy2znBa9LCQ

My MIL gave me a fetal heart monitor for my birthday (SO EXCITING) and here is one of the baby's heartbeats at 10 weeks!

I am now 11 weeks and 1 day! After much searching around, I've found another birth center in Houston, West Houston Birth Center, that does fraternal twins! I was so excited when I found them I cried! I'm not sure if my twins are fraternal or identical...but I made an appointment with them for Wednesday April 9 to do a tour and they are going to try to get me in for an ultrasound so we can determine which kind of twins they are. If they are fraternal my search will most likely stop there and I will be able to birth them in a birthing center (which would be my pick), but if they are identical then the search continues. I will look into home birth options if that's the case...I really don't want a hospital birth. We will see! I'm sure God will put me where it is best for me and the babies! :)

My Journey to Motherhood

Ever since I was a little girl I dreamed of being a mom. I always had a baby doll with me and would often sleep with one at night. My favorite baby doll was my water baby and I used to pray that if the rapture came or if I died that I would be able to take my water baby with me to Heaven, lol. I figured God would allow that since there can be no sadness in Heaven and I would definitely be sad without my water baby so therefore he would make an exception!

Throughout junior high, high school, and college all of my jobs centered around children. I babysat, nannied, worked at daycares...etc. I taught for a few years after college and daydreamed about the day I would have my own to teach (I've always wanted to homeschool). My husband Adam and I just weren't ready the first few years of marriage. He was still in college and when he graduated we just wanted to enjoy each other's company for a while and form a strong bond before adding to our family. Even though I really wanted to be a mom, I also knew that it was important for us to have that alone time and I also wanted us to both be ready for this commitment, financially and emotionally.

Well, we developed such a strong bond so quickly, one that I never thought was possible to be honest. After seeing my parent's marriage, then divorce, I just assumed that at some point things would go bad and we would end up fighting all the time...not that I wanted that to happen or doubted our love. But after the first year, then the second and third, I was amazed at how happy we were and how strong our love and friendship was! After the 4th year and nearing the 5th year, we were still in the "honeymoon" stage. I missed him during the day when we were apart and couldn't wait to be together again.

We've been able to travel together and have some great memories because of it! It seems like each anniversary gets bigger and more elaborate, lol!

Anni 1-Cabin in Mentone AL...Adam ski'd for the first time at a tiny ski resort with fake snow! :)

Anni 2-Destin Fl...centered around food, lol. This was at Ruth's Chris...Mmmmm!

Anni 3-Carnival Cruise to the Bahamas!!

 Anni 4-Winter Park, Colorado...we went skiing for real this time! ;)

...and snowmobiling! This was during a snow mobile break!

And finally...Anni 5-Anchorage and Fairbanks Alaska!! Let me go back a few months...We were at a good place. Adam had a great job at a new company, we made the big move to Houston Texas (I love Texas), we were at a good place financially, and more importantly...we were both READY!! Ready to become parents! Soooo....we started trying! We were so excited! Three months passed and nothing...I started charting my bbt the 3rd month and realized we had been off on my most fertile days. Even though 3 months doesn't seem long...it definitely is when you are trying! I thought it would never happen! Adam was already talking about seeing a fertility specialist, lol! He's a little impatient! 

Well, we knew that our 5 year anni trip was coming up in January and I told Adam that this would be our last try for a while. We had planned a Christmas cabin getaway with family and friends and I didn't want to have a baby in December or be 9 months preggo at Christmas because then we wouldn't be able to go. I didn't even want to think about not trying because now that we started we didn't want to stop until we became parents! I pushed those thoughts out of my head and we went on our 5 year anni trip to Alaska. It was AWESOME!!! We had such a great time!!!

This was our last night in Alaska! Little did we know that we were parents at this time!!! And yes, since life starts at conception...we were parents! :)

I noticed the last day or so while in Alaska that I was having hot flashes...weird! I thought maybe I was just wind-burned or something. After arriving back home and getting back into our routine, things were normal for the next week or so. Then one night I was REALLY thirsty...out of nowhere. But that was just one night so I didn't think much of it. Then maybe 2 days before AF was supposed to make her appearance...I started getting unusual cramps and a pulling feeling. Nothing major, just unusual. I would dream about the cramps at night and it would wake me up...strange! The night before AF, I told Adam about these weird happenings and he immediately said that I was pregnant! I thought so too, but didn't want to get my hopes up so I tried to play it down. We laid in bed talking about baby names for a while...just dreaming about having a baby and being parents. 

The next day I ran out and got a home pregnancy test. I couldn't wait for Adam to come home that night so we could take the test. He was a little late coming home...I think I called him every 10 minutes to see if he had left yet, lol. FINALLY he walked in the door and we ran straight to the bathroom to take the test. After taking the test, I put it down on the counter and told him not to peek. I walked to the kitchen to throw away the pee cup and before I made it back to the bathroom I heard him yell excitedly and jump up and down. I came running and he met me at the doorway. I said, "You didn't look did you?!" He said, "No, of course not..." but I knew better. He had a gleam in his eye and such a sweet, tender smile and then he hugged me. I dashed into the bathroom and grabbed the test...it was positive!! My hand started shaking and I just couldn't believe it! Wow! We were going to have a family! I was finally a mom!!

It was all so surreal! We immediately started calling family and let them in on the good news! We just couldn't wait...even if we were to have a miscarriage...there was still a little life inside me NOW and we were just too excited not to share that with the people we loved! 

Sooo....what did we do to celebrate?!? We went out that weekend and got 2 puppies, lol! What were we thinking?? I'm still not sure, but that's what we did! Meet Zoe and Daisy!

So to conclude, things could not have worked out more perfectly! We've had our alone time, we've traveled, and we've conceived on our 5th wedding anniversary...how cool is that! Life is great! :)