Last night we had our first child birth prep class! While a LOT of the stuff I either already knew, or it didn't really apply to me since I'm having twins, it was good. It was nice for us to do something as a couple and meet other expecting couples! Especially since we don't know ANYBODY who is expecting or has little babies. The last part of class where we did some breathing and relaxing was great!! It was pretty much like my yoga breathing, but it was good for hubby, and some of it was like snuggling, which was nice. In a few weeks we will have a multiples class, and I think that will be really helpful.

Here are some pics of the nursery!







And my 26 week and 3 days pic:

26 weeks

Had my OB appointment on Thursday. Everything looked good, pretty much. My cervix is fine, which is great! Both of the girls are still head down too. I liked that my OB wants to do vaginal is they stay head down. He said that having 2 and recovering from a C-section is not good, and I agree! I've heard too many stories about OBs who just jump to C-section. Glad I don't have one like that!

He also did measurements. Both girls' weights are perfect - 1 lb 14 oz. and 2 lbs! He did say that Sofia's head was a little big and her abdomen a little small. This is worrying me since we had a bad NT scan. He said it wasn't abnormal, but now I'm just really worried. Maya's measurements were great.

The nursery is all set up, and I will post pictures later!

Merry Christmas!

I was so excited because all of our furniture came in yesterday! So we picked it up and set it up last night. It was a lot of furniture to squeeze into a small room! What made it worse was that we have a bed that we need to keep for now since we will have visitors staying with us. But we managed to squeeze it all in there! I'm going to wait and take pictures once it's more done. I still have some stuff I need to get out of that room, and I will hopefully complete that today.

It's hard getting stuff done around the house. I get so tired and out of breath so easily. I do one thing, like clean some counter tops, and I have to rest. So it makes doing any projects very slow going! Also withing the past couple of days it has gotten harder. I'm usually ok in the mornings, but by afternoon, forget it! I'm done! My ankles have been swelling pretty bad too, so I do try to keep my feet up as much as possible. It's hard because most people think it's the same as being pregnant with one. It's not. I even had to talk to hubby about this. We got into an argument - well, ok a fight - and I think he realized that growing two really is different. Probably part of it was my fault. I tend to keep things inside and I don't like to complain, so I think he assumed I was fine. Had the typical aches and pains, but not as much as I really do. But we talked, and it's fine now. We are just going to have to remember to communicate to each other better.

And even though I do have aches and pains and it is getting rough, I would not trade this in for anything. I am so appreciative! And I love feeling them kicking me! The physical pain is a LOT different from the emotional pain of not being able to have kids. The physical pain is just that - physical. It gets better. Emotional pain is much worse. And that is something I will NEVER forget.

Maternity Leave

I finally have it all figured out! Maternity leave is super confusing, especially for teachers. Even though I am a state employee, I do not get SDI or anything. It's all different. Awhile ago I went and talked to payroll, and they of course scared me. Told me that unless my doctor approved time out before I give birth, I couldn't take ANY. Then, I could only stay out 6 or 8 weeks after birth. Any more time, I would have to get the doctor to approve it. Even though I have enough sick days to cover it. Oh, and those 6 or 8 weeks? That also gets taken out of my sick leave. Which makes no sense to me.

So I was getting worried that my doctor wouldn't approve extra time off, because I have heard stories of that happening. Luckily I have the coolest OB in the world and he told me he would approve any time before and after birth! That made me feel a lot better. I was still a little worried because I wasn't sure about my sick leave. But I calculated it out, and it works out so that I can use all my sick leave and half sick leave, and disability will cover the other part that the half sick leave does not. So that is a huge relief that I don't have to worry about my pay for the rest of the year or going back to work!

Stretch Marks

They are here. Stretch marks. Of course, I knew it was more than likely going to happen, but I held out hope! My mom never got any stretch marks with her three pregnancies. Of course, she also was never pregnant with twins! They aren't too bad yet, but I did notice the beginnings of some new ones today. I have read about women who are pregnant with twins who do not get any stretch marks until late - like 35 weeks! I think I would rather get mine early! Because if you get them at 35 weeks, I know I would be thinking, "wow! I didn't get any! It's almost time to give birth and I didn't get any!" Then, I would get some, and it would be an even bigger shock! So, I'm not happy about the stretch marks, but I'm not devastated either. I mean, I knew they could happen. It's all a part of the experience!

Hubby is making me laugh. He is totally nesting! His project this weekend was to paint the closet doors he made for the nursery. So, I thought that was ALL he was going to do, but apparently not! He took Friday off of work and did finished painting over the patch in the wall in our bedroom. Then, I thought he would start the closet doors. Nope! Instead, he caulked all of our trim around the house and painted the trim! Sure, it needed it, but it was a lot more work than just painting the doors! Saturday he started the doors. They are painted now and look great! I just find it amusing that he is nesting so much.

24 weeks!

I had an OB appointment yesterday. It was at 11:00 am, and I the going in in the middle of the day because my OB is always backed up! Wasn't too bad this time, but I like much better earlier in the morning! Anyway, I thought he was going to do measurements of the girls, but no. He said he would next time. So no pictures. Boohoo! He was pretty fast too, so I didn't get as good of a look at them as I like. But, they look even more like babies now! I can't remember if I posted about it, but last week I was laying on the couch and the side of my stomach popped out. I felt it, and it felt like a head! Well, it was! Last time, Maya was breech, and now she is not. So I know that was when she flipped. Crazy!! So now they are snuggled up close, although it did look like one was about hit the other in the head with her hand!

I've been having some Braxton-Hicks. Not very many, and only after I've been active, and my OB said not to worry. He said if they come with pain or don't go away with rest or are a lot more frequent, then to call. That was good to hear. My cervix is great, so at this point I can still do whatever I want! It was also nice that he said at this point it is up to me when I want to stop work! He will approve it! So, theoretically, I could stop tomorrow! That was really nice to know, because I wasn't sure about when I'd go out or anything. Originally, I wanted to try to make it to March 1. But I will be 35 weeks at that point. Judging from how I'm feeling this week, there is no way I will still be able to work at 35 weeks! So, if everything continues to go well, maybe I will shoot for stopping work between 30 and 32 weeks.

LAst weekend we ordered the cribs! I wanted to order the dresser at the same time, but no. Babies R Us had none in the warehouse and apparently they will not place orders unless they have it at the warehouse. Which makes no sense to me, but hey, that's Babies R Us! I did call earlier this week and they said I could order it starting on Saturday. So that's the plan! It will be so exciting to get some furniture in the nursery!

It's funny to me. It seems a lot of people are able to rely on their family for many things, and that's wonderful. Me, I've never been able to rely on my family, so that's nothing new. But hubby has been able to rely on his family for some things, until now it seems. I guess it's just funny to me that some of our friends have been more supportive and helpful to us since finding out we are having twins than any of our families! A friend of mine sent me a TON of stuff recently - tons of clothes, and I mean tons! A Bumbo, Bjorn, and other really useful stuff that will totally come in handy! Now another friend is going to give us another bag of clothes! But our families really haven't said much about anything. Hubby's dad at first said he would help us, and told us a few times specifically that he'd send money. He never did. Part of the problem is he's an alcoholic. My dad was an alcoholic too, so I know they talk big and don't follow through. But honestly, before now he has followed through. So I guess I thought if it was important he would do it. Guess not. And the rest of his family hasn't really said much about anything. And, really, I don't want it to sound like I'm being greedy or anything, but I just thought we'd have more family support. So I know that this is one area that WILL change as we raise our babies. They will have family support. My family was never close, and I want our new family to be close and have a good relationship, so I am going to work on that. I know no family is perfect, but I can make it better for my kids.

OH Good god. I thought the "lovely" anon posts were done - guess not. Since this person only read "money" in my post - let me clarify. I'm not just talking about money. I'm talking more about emotional support, and follow through. If you say you are going to do something, do it. We will be fine financially - yes, I'm stressing, but I stress, that is me. It's not just about money. It's about putting family first. It's about priorities. Basically, friends of ours have showed more concern emotionally about us than our families.

I'm seriously laughing at this comment because it talks about me not being ready. Um, ok. Have you read any of my blog?? Almost 2 years of TTC and I'm not ready. Sorry, don't think so! I'm also not immature. I've had to deal with FAR more than MOST people have to EVER deal with in their ENTIRE LIFETIME. My struggles go back to childhood. I have NEVER had it easy. But, I am stronger for it and I have turned out well. I have a good job, a great husband, a home, and expecting 2 babies! Yes, I know I will have many sleepless nights - you think I didn't think about that? Come ON! I had over 2 years of thinking about that. Your comments remind me of a typical "fertiles" comments.

Like I said before, even though I gave some monetary examples, it's not about money. It's about showing that you CARE. It's about doing what you can within your means and making family a priority. We have had not really had that from our families. And you know what? Yes, some material items do come into play. I don't expect much, I really don't, but I do expect family to come first. Our friends have treated us more like family than our family. That was the point.

Today I got Newsweek magazine - I get a subscription for work - and the cover story was about diet and fertility! The neat thing was there was finally a study done on it. However, it looked like the only thing it studied was if the women had ovulatory dysfunction. The article also talked about the impact of diet on insulin levels. And really, everything they talked about sounded like PCOS to me. I'm glad there was a study, but I wish more studies would be done especially for "unexplained" infertility. I didn't read the end of the article, but I hope it didn't make light of the topic. Sometimes just a change in diet will not help. I do think there are plenty of environmental factors that come into play.

I used to work at this school that was in the inner city. It was awful. And honestly, I was concerned for my health. Interestingly enough, at least 4 of us who worked there were dealing with infertility! That is a pretty high number. Also, there were a few people who also got cancer. It really makes me wonder about the environment there. Luckily, I got out after a couple years but most stayed.

I was happy to see that article, maybe more people will become educated about infertility. I think we are going to continue to see a rise in it because of our diet and the toxins in the environment, unfortunately.

Thanks for all the nice comments!

Today I went to my school district's central office - the main office of the program I work for is there - and 3 people only had nice things to say! Such a relief after pretty much only hearing how big I am. Plus, I had a really awful comment today, so the nice ones really made up for it. The awful comment was from a co-worker at my school, she was surprised at how big I had gotten in the last week (though I don't think I am THAT much bigger) she was shocked and then told me it was like in that movie where she is pregnant with a demon and gets big over night. Wow. Thanks a LOT. So I tried to just forget that one. Later, three people at the district office told me how cute I looked! So much better than a demon comment! Nothing at all about how large I am. It was so nice.

Then, I got home and my diaper bag had arrived!! I was so excited because I bought it online from Skip Hop with a 50% off code! Here is the bag:
I love it! Nice and big, lots of pockets and cute!