20 weeks + baby update

banner / little dovie 

tee  / liz lange maternity

sleeveless cardigan / groopdealz

pants c/o destination maternity  

How far along? 20 weeks 

Total weight gain: Still standing strong at just 7 pounds.  I was surprised to see the scale had not moved at my 20 week appointment yesterday, even after having drank 2 bottles of water + coffee ad a bowl of fruit.  I should have had some kind of water gain there somewhere.  The belly is definitely not laking in growth, thats for sure.

Maternity clothes? Um, yes. I can still wear some of my flowy blouses that I invested in post twin belly, but for the most part everything is maternity - especially PANTS.  Ive been living in leggings (favorites HERE + HERE) for several weeks (months?), and I'm partially thankful for the remaining cooler weather.  The other part of me looks at my bright spring/summer maternity clothes and can't wait to wear them more often.

Sleep:  Fantastic. There is not other word to describe bed time.  Most of me wants to crawl right into bed right after the girls go down between 7:30p-8pm.  But most often I go for cereal or popcorn in front of Chopped to wind down before hitting the pillow.

Best moment this week: Lots of things have been going on n this last week.  It is the sweetest feeling to have others celebrate your baby belly with you. That feeling will never get old.  I am not one of those ladies that get all weird about having someone touch their belly.  Touch away my friends.. or strangers.  I am proud of it!  BUT- above all, the greatest moment this week was not only celebrating Jordan's 33rd birthday, but we got to see our baby girl on the same day!  I wish for a sonogram every single day week, just so I can see her precious face, fingers, toes, and mannerisms in the womb.

Worst Moment this week:  Emotions continue to run high for me, so tears come really easy.  I can't pinpoint just one thing that hit me right on the cord for tears that was the absolute worst..       

Miss Anything? This week I've been feeling fabulous, and I cannot say that I miss anything in particular related to pregnancy vs. no-pregnancy.  Oh.   I know - sushi.  give me all the raw fish.  All of it.         

Cravings: Sushi (see above).  Dry cereal has become a regular snack, but cannot say that its a true craving.  Sandwiches (I legit think about Subway during meetings.. doesn't matter what time of day it is..) and big fat salads.  With fried chicken.  Because grilled chicken is weird to me still, so if I cannot see it (ahem.. its coated in breading..) then it doesn't bother me. Dietitian of the Year.

Symptoms: Congestion.  I blow my nose about 47 times a day.  I'm up a couple times a night to use the bathroom (and blow my nose).  HBS (heavy belly syndrome << not a real thing..)  I watched a video that Jordan's mom had on her phone the other night of me and Jordan the night before we went in for the Csection with the girls - I was HUGE.  THAT was heavy belly syndrome.  I'm still really tired most of the time.  I could nap anywhere + anytime. This pregnancy is SO different on that aspect versus my pregnancy with the twins.  It is amazing what a busy day will do to my energy and brain power.  I slow down really easily.      

Looking forward to:  We've started ordering and organizing things for her nursery!  It is going to be precious:)  Vintage French with Rose, White, and touches of Gold.  The barn wood plank wall is scheduled to go up in a couple weeks, and we are in the process of getting things ordered and ideas put into place.  I will be sharing more on our nursery inspiration + pictures in the coming weeks!  All this is so exciting.

20 weeks / twins

BABY GIRL UPDATE

We are officially 20 weeks (+2 days) and with that comes the b i g growth/anatomy scan that happens anywhere from 18-20 weeks gestation.  We have been waiting for another sonogram for what seems like forever!  I am so impatient. 

Dixie (the sonographer) confirmed that she is actually a SHE.  Our perinatoligist has an excellent track record for gender determination in the early weeks of pregnancy (12 weeks + 5 days for this baby, right at 13 weeks with Parker and Jolie), and she wouldn't provide what she thought she found unless she was 98% positive thats what she was looking at, so we felt confident in what she found during the first trimester screening.  But still.. I was sort of holding my breath until Dixie made her way around to baby girl's femur to measure:)

We saw our littlest move like a crazy baby in my belly- she was evening bumping the scanning probe, making our sonogropher laugh out loud.  Jordan sneezed at one point and startled every one in the room, including that tiny thing in my belly.  In the 45 minutes we spent in awe of her sweetness, we got to see her hiccup, roll, play with and eventually suck her fingers, and my all time favorite was watching her yawn SO big.  I couldn't believe what I can just seen. 

Dixie got great measurements of baby girl - she is measuring a week ahead at 21 weeks +1 day.  Being a twin mom and having a previous experience with placenta declination (Jolie @ 34 weeks stopped growing as rapidly as she should have been due to placenta decline - at one point she was 2 weeks smaller than Parker) and working so much about making sure my babies were growing and thriving, I was basically dancing on the table to hear she was bigger than expected.  I'll take that any day over the other option of her being smaller!

She has a healthy heart, healthy, formed limbs, and a full connection between her lips and her nose (meaning no visible signs of cleft lip).  Looking back at Parker and Jolie's sonogram pictures, our littlest sister definitely has Parker's nose and round cheeks (first thing out of friends and family's mouth when we shared the sono with them), and Jolie's petite profile.  Jolie's chin was dropped while Parker's chin was more predominate.. and this baby girl has the dropped chin like Jo Grace.

Mama has a strong cervix at this point, but I have been feeling some tightness in my lower belly (similar to Braxton Hicks) and so I was advised to limit my work around the house and carrying my 28 pound toddlers around.  My OB isn't worried at all whatsoever, because when I feel my belly during this (internal) tightness, it isn't tight like what I feel with a true contraction or Braxton Hicks, so all is well. They will start scanning me more often around 24 weeks (yippee!) to check on baby girl and to measure my cervix more accurately due to my history of a weak cervix with the twins.  We are all hoping that it was the fact that I had two babies in my belly causing preterm labor.  

All and all, everything is looking 'perfect'.  It was an amazing day and we are so thankful for our healthy baby girl!