Beware the Babysnatcher!

I'm one of those people who has somewhat irrational fears. The person walking behind me is always going to try to rob me. Trash bags on the side of the highway probably have dead bodies inside them. Things like that (thanks Mom). One of those fears this pregnancy has been of the woman who lost her baby and kidnaps me and takes mine. It happens on TV shows all the time! I just never imagined the would-be babysnatcher would be a two-and-a-half-year-old girl!

My sister-in-law, the one who is expecting her third child, emailed me a hilarious story today. Her daughter, whom we'll call Violet to keep with our color theme, desperately wanted her new sibling to be a girl. Despite being told by her mother that it was a boy, Violet didn't seem to process this information, until yesterday, to which she said "I told you I wanted a sister!" Like they could simply return the baby boy and switch for a sister. When told again that the baby would be a brother (yay, two brothers!), Violet told her mother, very matter-of-factly, "Aunt Red is having a girl. A boy and a girl. I'll take her girl." Because, you know, I've got a spare baby on my hands. Apparently my sister-in-law has talked her down to simply playing with my baby girl and helping to take care of her.

I can just imagine the look on her face as she thought through the problem (I want a sister) and came up with a solution (Aunt Red has an extra baby girl coming). Makes perfect sense! Future lawyer?

Still Preggo, Don't Worry

I know I haven't posted much in the last week. I've just been too wiped out, really. But I am still preggo, still trudging along, although apparently whenever I call my parents, they see my number on caller ID and think, "Uh oh!"

My mother also has been dreaming about the babies coming. In one she related to me, I was in the hospital giving birth the old-fashioned way, and delivered one baby. Then I said, "I'm done," and tried to get up and leave the hospital with baby two still hanging out in my belly. My mom woke up and had to check her phone to make sure I hadn't called to say I was in labor. So they are taking care of the worrying for me, because I have had absolutely NO dreams about popping these babies out. I'm a bit zen about the whole thing. They'll be here a month from yesterday, or, in weeks, four weeks from this upcoming Wednesday. Crazy.

So this week makes 34 weeks! A very real possibility the babies could try to escape any time, although as of my last NST and ultrasound last Thursday, they are making no efforts to do so. The average delivery week is 36 weeks for twins, but still hoping they hang out until 38 weeks. With an end date for work in sight, I think I can make it. Starting this week I have to go twice a week for the NST and ultrasound, so two half-days at work a week. Still have to deal with the obnoxious commute, but I think I can deal.

This week the babies are butternut squashes.

What's cool is they can now distinguish between songs and might react differently to different songs. They probably react poorly to anything I sing, as I really have no ability to carry a tune. I should make Blue sing to them...

They also pee about a pint a day. Awesome. And kind of gross considering they end up swallowing it. Ewwwww!

One of my friends had her baby girl last Wednesday, so a shout out to Mama A and Baby K, who is absolutely beautiful. And another friend is having her baby boy today, so I am wishing her lots of luck! Can't wait until it's my turn!

Oh, in case any of you were wondering, I did manage to find Apple Orchard donuts in my hometown. Phew! Dunkin Donuts isn't a total fail.

Babies and Lemons

Just wanted to share this bit of cuteness with you all. While I believe my niece actually liked the taste of lemons (if I am remembering correctly), it seems most babies are quite shocked by them. I think I'm going to be a horrible mother and have my kiddos try them too. With camera in hand, of course.

33 Weeks!

Here we are at 33 weeks. Where did the last week go? Feeling somewhat re-energized after my self-imposed bedrest yesterday, but I still have a little case of the sniffles. I would much rather be in bed than at work, especially on a day we usually get off. However, this year Columbus Day was sacrificed so we could have Monday through Wednesday off the week of July 4th. I suppose I can't complain too much, except I'm much more in need of the time off now than I was in July. But I digress.

First, a shout out to Fuschia (my sister-in-law, remember?) who is celebrating her big 3-0 today. And an advance happy birthday to my brother (who did maternity pictures) who will be 32 on Wednesday! When I was little I used to swear I'd be older than him someday. I think I'm finally happy that isn't possible!

Here's a quick photo from the wedding we were at Saturday. I'm actually belly to belly with Blue's sister, who is expecting her third in March. I wasn't sure if she'd want her photo up here so I cropped her out. I'm so excited for our babies to grow up together!

Can I just say I'm loving my hair here? I used rollers for about a half an hour then hair sprayed the crap out of it and I had lovely waves all day. I should do that more often, because it really wasn't hard.

This week the babies are durians, which if I remember correctly are a really really stinky fruit. They also look quite terrifying.

thebump.com

They could grow up to an inch this week, and as we've seen in our growth checks, they gain about a half a pound each weekly. They keep their eyes open when awake, which is kind of cool. Their skin is becoming less translucent and is looking more like mine (to which Blue would laugh and say "But your skin IS translucent." I get it, I'm pale.) or Blue's (who is Mediterranean and thus a darker, olive tone).

I cannot wait to see who they look like!

Baby Growth Update

I've been slacking writing my next entry because to be honest, I usually write blog posts as a mental sanity break at work and I've been off since Thursday, when I had my latest appointment. But since I'm trying to relax as much as possible today and have been vegging in the bed in the living room watching various sports all day, I suppose I have time to write!

So Thursday was my latest non-stress test and ultrasound, along with a visit with my doctor. Great heart rates, no contractions, all is looking well on the NST side.

And the ultrasound revealed that the babies are growing perfectly. I believe they are in the 56th and 54th percentiles or something to that effect. Baby Boy is 4lbs 5oz, and Baby Girl is 4lbs 6oz (she's the bigger one again!). By now they are probably more like 4lbs 8oz, as they are growing at about 7oz a week. Which means by the time November 14th rolls around, we're looking at 7lb babies. Oy. Great news for them, not so great for my expanding belly and increasingly achy back. Just glad they are looking healthy, though! Baby Girl still refused to show her face, and Baby Boy remains easily identifiable by his nose. No pictures this week, though, sorry.

I then visited my doctor and learned that after 34 weeks, I have to have NSTs done twice a week. My boss is just going to LOVE that. I do love that, because it means even LESS time at work. I think I'm already down to 19 full days left (including some half days that combine for a full day). Hey! My last day of work is a month from yesterday. Sweet!

In other news, my dad and his girlfriend were in town en route to a family wedding and spent a few days with us. They live in Florida so it's always great to see them. And they brought gifts for babies. Lots and lots of bibs, among other adorable things. I'm a slob, and it's a good bet our babies will be, too, so I'm sure they'll come in handy. They also stocked us up with diapers and wipes. Except with two, the stash will probably only last a week or two. A sobering reality to see how much will go so quickly...

Blue and I are bummed we can't go to my side's family wedding and see everyone (congrats L & C!), but we actually had a wedding for Blue's side yesterday (congrats M & D!), and he was in it. It was a fun but very long day for this mama (hence lying in bed all day today). I managed to dance to a few songs. I can't resist oldies like the Twist! I did worry about their hearing, the music and bass were so loud, but I suppose it probably just sounds like Dory speaking Whale in Finding Nemo. I hope.

So many people commented on how small I am for having twins, but I was reassured by my doctor that I am just carrying well, so I'm not worried. I'm sure today's wedding will be great too, and I'm looking forward to seeing pictures. Even without yesterday's wedding, it probably wouldn't be good to go too far from my hospital at this point... 33 weeks tomorrow! Lots of twins decide to come now! Hopefully not ours...

Now, to drag myself out of bed and do some laundry. Blue is picking up creamy tomato soup and brie (one of my favorite lunch combos) so the least I can do is make sure he has clean underwear...

Dunkin Donuts Fail

Got some bad news this morning when I went to Dunkin Donuts to get my apple orchard donut (it's my latest obsession). They aren't selling them anymore! She tried to give me some excuse about seasons changing but hello, apple orchard = fall. It JUST became fall. Hence, apple orchard donuts should be available until December 21, no? I settled for a pumpkin donut, which was decent but did not taste like fall exploding in my mouth in delightful nuances of apple, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Sigh. I am hoping it is just this store, as they usually have a fairly limited selection of donuts, or perhaps even just Manhattan, and that I will find my favorite donut to be available near my home. Mission for the weekend... hunt down apple orchard donuts! They pair so well with Dunkin's pumpkin coffee.

This feels like when Starbucks stopped offering Espresso Truffle coffee drinks, even in winter. I don't think I've been to a Starbucks since. That drink was heaven.

Dammit. Now I want an apple orchard donut AND an Espresso Truffle drink...

32 Weeks, aka 8 Months!

Having a pretty decent Monday, for a Monday ::knocks wood::. Blue and I were walking from our cars to the train when another commuter called out to me to tell me I look great. She asked when I was due and if we knew what we were having. When I told her one of each, she was blown away that I'm having twins and am as small as I am. This repeats a theme that came up a lot over the weekend. A clerk at the grocery store was similarly surprised, and people at a family event also commented on how small I am. I swear the babies are the right size and growing well! But it does make me a little paranoid. I'll double check at my ultrasound this week that there's nothing I should be worried about. But in the meantime, feeling flattered that people think I look good!

So this week it's 32 weeks down, 6 to go until eviction date. Craziness. This also means only 5 more weeks and 2 days of work. I counted and it's 25 work days. Probably less because I am taking several half days for doctor's appointments. So let's call it 23 days at the office. Woohoo!! And this week I'm taking Thursday and Friday off so it should fly by!

This week apparently the babies are squashes (weren't they acorn squashes not long ago?).

I'm pretty sure these numbers are the same as last week because baby size can vary a lot in the third trimester, so it's just a range. What's kind of cool is that they can now experience REM sleep, which means they can dream! Wondering what an in-utero baby dreams about if it's never seen anything... Is it just sounds and sensations? Wish I could ask them...

So much left to do, and not just in the nursery. I need to pack up a bag for the hospital, just in case they decide to come early. I need to come up with some good recipes to prepare and freeze so I can just dump everything in the crockpot after the babies come (or whoever is at my house can dump into the crockpot). Then I need to actually prepare them. Which requires some serious freezer reorganization. I need to make a list of what we need to do immediately after they arrive for health insurance, daycare FSA, maternity leave, etc. I need to do a good, deep clean of the house to try to get rid of as much dust and fur as possible. We need to reclaim our bedroom, which has become a dumping ground for anything and everything as we are mainly living on the lower level these days.

I think that's it... for now.

Oh, and I need to buy some comfy pants that I can hang out in during the week or two of recovery. And, let's face it, that I will probably hang out in until I'm forced to put on real clothes.