How far along? 37 Weeks- full term!! You can tell by the cheesy grin on my face that I am oh-so-excited, yes?
Total weight gain: 36 pounds. I had an unsaid goal to gain 40 pounds while carrying twins- and I'd say I was successful:) But, seriously- look at my HUGE bump? I had a guy do a quadruple-take yesterday as I approached the doors to my doctor's office. He must have noticed my incredible preggo swag (read: waddle). If the quadruple-take wasn't enough, he proceeded to let out an over-reactive "ohhh", covering his mouth and grabbing his own stomach. Yes, serious. All I could do was laugh (really hard)- and maintaining my preggo swag became difficult. I had to stop for air halfway to the elevators. After taking twelve , ten, eight, five (what is an appropriate number to share with you on this one without stirring up your thoughts of tremendous vanity?) this week's belly picture(s) I realized that I'm covering up part of my chalkboard with that mass. But, I decided that you can easily tell what it says and I was getting dizzy (I unintentionally hold my breathe when I smile.. that can't be good for mom or babies) so I was done with the pictures.
Maternity clothes? Yes- it is December 5th and I'm wearing a tank top. 80* anyone? Hardly Christmas weather. Makes me sad because I luurrvvee sweater-weather. I've been forcing the long sleeves over the past few weeks, and after getting up from the sweat puddles that I sat in while doing my hair and makeup, I decided I was okay to bare my full arms. I did carry a sweater in my purse, but it never saw the light of day. As of this last week- or two- anything that is comfortable and fits (to some extent), is what I'm wearing. I wore my denim skinnies (that I've practically lived in for the past nine months) to my (final!!) doctor appointment this week and thought I was going to die. They put so much pressure on the lower part of my belly that I almost requested to lay down in the back seat of the car for the drive home. I was miserable- and (the hubs will agree) I've never complained of being miserable- poor Jordan didn't know what to do for me. At home I've been wearing the same maternity yoga pants from Target for the past two weeks. They are beyond comfortable and don't over crowd my low hanging belly. I've washed them (once?), of course.. and sit in my bed pant-less while they dry. Sadly- I'm not kidding at all. In my defense, the other 3 pairs of maternity lounge pants that I own are packed away in my bag for my future hospital stay.
Stretch marks? None. Good genes. Thanks, Mom..
Sleep: Sleep has come better these days. I'm pretty much in a constant state of exhaustion, so I haven't experienced the annoying bouts of insomnia I once had on a regular basis. Still getting up pretty early- but, yesterday I slept until 6:45am before rolling out of bed. Nice.
Best moment this week: At our appointment with the perinatologist on Tuesday, all looked excellent with the babies- both are still super healthy girls with great cord dopplers and heartbeats at 146bpm and 154bpm. Last week the girls' amniotic fluid dropped pretty significantly, but as of Tuesday, their fluid levels were back on the high end (as they've been through my entire pregnancy). I was glad to see two big(ger) healthy girls on the monitor and a great report from Dr. Koster.
Miss Anything? Ease of movement. And throw grace in there with my ease of movement. I have neither.
Movement: I usually have a baby part sticking out somewhere, and if not, one or both of them have the hiccups. Jordan likes to play whack-a-mole with their little feet sticking up all over the place.
Food cravings: None. Food is completely uninteresting to me. Tonight Jordan has planned a steak dinner to celebrate our last night as a family of two. Steak, baked potato, salad, and grilled French breaaaddd. We have made it into a special night.. and I'm full already just thinking about it.
Oh wait- did I mention that these babies will be here tomorrow?
Symptoms: I am (still) super congested, complete with a daily headache and constant nose blowing. I sound pretty horrible sometimes- but the sound is worse than I actually feel.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nada.
Labor Signs: Oh yes. As of last Thursday I had a little over a centimeter left of cervix, which in turn actually means none at all. My OB came in the room after reviewing the sonogram and said "Honey, you know you'll never make it until December 12th, right? How about we plan on getting those babies out on Thursday next week.. but as for this weekend, I'm not on call, so you cannot go into labor. Which means that you will not get out of bed for anything but to pee." It was a funnnn weekend (read: serious sarcasm) I did some online Christmas shopping and enjoyed a Law and Order: SVU marathon. Needless to say, I made it through the weekend, and its looking like I'll make it to Thursday morning at 9am when we are to arrive for delivery. Having regular BH contractions- most super uncomfortable, but nothing with increasing intensity.
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: So excited, I/we can be nothing but happy!!! I am not sure that I'll be able to sleep much for the next 24 hours- too much to think about and look forward to, thats for sure.
Looking forward to: We are so, SO close. In just about 24 hours we will meet our little baby girls. I cannot believe it is already here. I feel like these past 9 months have flown by- and yes, I say this even with the 3+ months of bed rest.
While I wont be blogging until we get home and settled- you better bet that I'll be blowing up instagram with proud mommy pictures and updates. You can follow me at masseya.
I did want to acknowledge everyone that has commented and emailed me throughout my journey with this pregnancy. It is amazing how the slightest encouragement can lift your spirits to another level on a less than stellar day. I love (like, really LOVE) reading through what you all have had to say, and am so thankful for each one of you and your words of wisdom and prayer. Its been a long road to 'full term' and know that we are so lucky and are confident that without a doubt His perfect hands has been involved through all of it. I have continued to thank God for every single (extra) day he has given me with these little bits. Carrying them to 37 weeks is a huge accomplishment, and I will say that I am so proud of it, but it is not my doing that did this- the glory is totally His. I am so blessed. Blessed with an amazing medical team. Blessed with sweet neighbors, close friends, and precious family. Blessed with an above average (and incredibly handsome) husband. Blessed with readers like you that have shared your words of encouragement as each week goes by. Blessed with my new 'blogger' friends that I feel like I 'know' and have known for years- you know who you are;). And finally, I am so blessed to have carried these two this far.
So, thank you. These are just two simple words, but please know that they are loaded with (hyper-preggo) emotions behind them.
37 weeks down.. ready or not, here they come!
