There is an end in sight!

Well, I will be 39 weeks on Sunday.  Never imagined I would make it this far! I am really thankful, but, by golly, it is time to get these babies out!  I think my doctor agrees.  Baby A is weighing around 6 lb 11 oz. and B is right at 6 lb.  The sonographer said that these weights could easily be too low though, since they are so squished in there and it is hard to get a really accurate measurement. At my appointment this week, they planned to "strip my membranes," but my cervix was too tight to do it.  He said my cervix is very thin at this point, so if I were to start contracting, he thinks it would dilate pretty easily. This also happened at the end of my pregnancy with Sally, and I suspect that having had the cerclage in for so long, my cervix is just not going to loosen up like it normally would unless it has a lot more time.  I am about 3 cm dilated right now and maybe 90% effaced.  I am super super uncomfortable, but getting the babies to come on out is not only a matter of my personal comfort.  He explained to me that as large and distended as my uterus is (carrying 2 full term babies), the likelihood of my labor being long and inefficient or, at its worst, ineffective, only increases as I get bigger.  He said if he were going to induce, it would be better to do it at 39 weeks than at 40.  If I waited until 40 weeks (or later, ugh!), then they might have to help sustain my natural labor with pitocin anyway.   So, we are set for an induction this coming Tuesday if the babies don't show up by then.  Actually, we might even get to go on Monday if a spot opens up. He actually said that, rather than starting right off with pitocin, they might start by just breaking my water to see if contractions will start then.  I am still so hoping that they come on their own this week, but at this point, I don't care how they come out.  I just want them out! I did have a horrible experience with induction with Sally, but I think, in large part, it was because I was trying to go without an epidural.  This time I KNOW I need to get one.  I had actually already planned to regardless of how I went into labor because if I do end up needing a c-section, I want to be awake when they are born rather than have to go under general anesthesia. 

My mom is still here, and has graciously changed her flight until a week after they are scheduled to arrive so she can be around to meet them and to help us adjust at home for a bit.  We are all done with our nesting projects.  She has made me want to hire a personal housecleaner/cook/nanny when she leaves because she has been spoiling me so much!

Pregnancy lately for me has been:
-leaving me sleep deprived, but perhaps better ready to cope with the lack of sleep I will get when the twins arrive?

-causing me to not want to go in public because of HOW MUCH PEOPLE STARE.  I mean, on an individual basis, I understand, and it doesn't bother me so much.  But I just get tired of it.  I feel like I have had a taste of what it might feel like to have a physical deformity or something else that calls attention to itself in public.  I guess people just get used to it?

-slightly sad in that just this past week i started seeing signs of stretch marks (boo hoo, I know--it really isn't a big deal, but I can whine, right?)  If they had just come a little sooner. . .

-making me look like an elephant from the calf down.  See picture below:

Sorry if you don't like feet!  But they feel even worse than they look.  And this picture was only taken mid-day, so they will be much worse by the evening.  I would really like to walk around a lot to try to get things going, but my feet won't let me.
-giving me some extra time with my family before the babies get here.  I am thankful to get to focus on them more right now.
-making me marvel at the contortions my abdomen is capable of as the babies stretch around in there.  Really, there is no room for kicking anymore, so movement is more of a visible thing than something you can feel with your hand (of course, I can feel it though-especially in my ribs).
-teaching my to be patient and thankful.   I am not a very patient person by nature, so it has been a challenge!

I can't wait to meet these two sweet girls!  I love getting to see what they look like after wondering for so long.  Neither of my first two looked like I had imagined, so I am not even trying to guess what these two will look like.  It is so cool that there are TWO of them and that they will look just alike!  Keep us in your prayers over the next week! 

False Labor and almost 38 weeks

Well, last Saturday night, I had my first experience with false labor.  My doctor told me not to "dilly dally" in getting to the hospital if I had regular contractions at least 5 min. apart for an hour.  Since my cerclage was still placed at the point, then my cervix was at risk for tearing if I started to dilate much.  I definitely wanted to avoid that, so to the hospital we went.  I was also having a lot of shaking, as if I were really cold.  I thought that was unusual, so I figured I probably was in labor.  Once a the hospital, the contractions continued regularly, but then slowly tapered off.  I was so disappointed when the doctor told me I could go home.  My doctor wasn't on call, so I guess it is good that I still have the chance to have him deliver the babies.  He IS on call this weekend, so hopefully they will come then.

I had another doctor's appointment yesterday to have my cerclage removed (not fun), and then came back today for a sonogram and just to talk to him about what is to come in the next week.  Babies hadn't grown much. A is 6 lb. 5 oz. still, and B was up to 5 lb. 14 oz.  They are both still head down (yay!) which means that a vaginal delivery is still quite possible.  Today, the doctor told me that I should plan for that, but wanted me to be aware that a c-section might end up happening, depending on how the babies do.  Apparently, when you are this far along in a twin pregnancy, labor can go a little more slowly and inefficiently.  So, if the babies tolerate a longer labor, and as long as my body keeps labor going enough to be productive, then a normal delivery shouldn't be a problem.  If their heart rates drop, if the second baby turns, or if my body isn't handling labor well, then I might have to have a c-section.  My next appointment (hopefully I won't have to keep it!) is on Tuesday.  I'll have a sonogram again and then the doctor will "strip my membranes" and perhaps stretch my cervix.  Sounds like a blast.

I am trying to stay positive and content during this waiting period, but it is tough!  I have to remind myself that I am THANKFUL to have progressed this far, even though it is so tough on my body. I said my goal was to make it to September 1st, which I have!  I am praying that they come sometime during this week or weekend.  My mom's birthday is on Saturday, and my sister's is on Sunday, so one of those days would be a great day for them to come.  I am also praying for a smooth and safe delivery with no c-section.  This weekend, we are scheduling a date night (thanks for the idea Ashleigh!), so that if we have no babies, we'll at least have something to look forward to.  My mom's flight leaves on Wednesday, so I am really hoping they come before then!  She has been such a blessing to us this whole time, and I would be so sad if she had to leave before meeting the twins.

And finally, on a funnier note, I am noticing that I am the object of quite a bit of public staring.  My close friends will tell you that I am not the best at hiding my own staring at someone else, and I can now see why this is a problem!  Today this girl at the Y totally stared me down the whole way as I walked toward where she was sitting and then turned her head to watch me walk away from her.  It was MORE than obvious.  There are lots more incidences of more subtler staring wherever I go.  People ask me when I am due all the time.  I think I need to wear a sign that says, "Yes, I do know that I look very pregnant." or "You don't have to stare."  I guess I should get used to more attention out in public though, since I have been warned that people flock to twins like crazy, and that you can't get much done as far as shopping, etc. without having to talk to lots of people about your twins.