I need some advice

I, like all other new mothers, have a ton of questions. I need so advice from some experienced mommas out there. Here are my questions:

How can I transition my kids into sleeping on their own in their own cribs? They up to this point will only sleep for hours at a time if someone is holding them. These leaves us exhausted.

How can I make tummy time better for them?

Is it worth it to make a bottle/diaper/sleep log?

Thanks for any advice!

Parenthood...scary, tough and joyful

During these past two months I have gone through so many ups and downs. I swear Brett and I are vampires because we never sleep anymore. We both have been finding our way into how to be parents. Let me tell you, it has been a rough road. Twins are a baptism by fire into becoming a mom and dad. Figuring out how to make time for both or how to take care both is hard. Out of all that though I cannot even express how happy luke and Logan have made me. Seeing them smile or hearing a giggle makes my heart smile. I honestly never realized how hard this would be or how much I could love these boys.

Week 29

Today I had another ultrasound and everything is looking A ok. Baby A is weighing in at 4lbs 1oz and baby B is coming in at 3lbs and 6oz. The tech said that is within the normal limits and that the size difference is normal. I know that is baby B really starts lagging behind then it is something to worry about but he is still ahead of the curve. Both babies are still moving around like crazy and everything is looking really good. I am having problems still with my legs going numb and feeling dizzy or almost passing out. The main reason for all that is that baby A is sitting closer to my spine and is putting a lot of weight on all my nerves and arteries. Fun, Fun, Fun. But all that matters is that they are both healthy and as long as I dont do too much I really do not have problems. I am getting excited that the time for them to make an appearance is coming closer. Hopefully not too soon but the doctors have said anytime after 36 weeks is a good time for them to be born. Yay!

Recent Twin Buys

So I started baby scrapbooks a few months ago when I still thought these two were girls. Needless to say, I had to start over once I found out what we were dealing with. Rather than start all over and spend a lot of money again on stuff I already bought in the wrong color palate, I decided to go for a pre-made version. I figured Amazon would have a good book somewhere on there. Eventually I came across a brand called the Pepper Pot. Oh my gosh do I love these books. They are really well made and super cute.

I started filling them out as soon as I got them. They each go up to the first day of school. I totally recommend these baby books to anyone looking. They run $28.00 each but for something I am hoping they will keep forever, 28 bucks isn't so bad.

Another recent purchase is a book on multiples. A lot of the books I have come across all talk about singletons or if they do talk about twins, it talks about how to take care of them after they are born. I FINALLY found a book about the pregnancy. I just wish I found it sooner. I goes over everything from diet, weight gain, rest, fetal growth and development and the difference between a single baby pregnancy and twin pregnancy. I love it.

Its called When You're Expecting Twins, Triplets, or Quads 3rd Edition: Proven Guidelines for a Healthy Multiple Pregnancy. For anyone expecting more than one, this is a must read.

Week 28

I am getting bigger and bigger that's for sure. My pregnancy shirts are hanging on for dear life and am not sure how much longer they will work.
Pregnancy is getting tougher. At 28 weeks I am already measuring well beyond 20 weeks of a single pregnancy and I still have a ways to go. I have already been to the hospital twice for some constant braxton hicks contractions. I am also having trouble with standing and sitting for any length of time. I feel totally winded just getting up and walking around for 10 minutes. Luckily my body in all other ways is doing fine. The test they performed on me at the hospital showed that most likely I wont be delivering in the next week and a half. Also I am doing well with my weight gain and my glucose level is right where is should be. I am happy not to be on official bed rest but I have pretty much just been in bed all the day anyway. My body really cant take too much activity.

My boys are still kicking all the time and very strongly. I love feeling them move. All my doctors and nurses are impressed with their size. Hopefully they will keep it up and not need preemie clothes at all.

I am not sure if everyone knows but we have officially chosen names for the boys. The first to come out will be Luke Phillip (Phillip is Bretts Dads middle name) and the second baby is Logan Albert (Albert after my Dads middle name).

Ultrasound and Dr appointment

Today was a busy day. I had a routine doctors appointment and later in the day I had a ultrasound. I always look forward to the ultrasounds and I am totally spoiled with them. No pictures to show everyone this time but it was really nice to see my boys again. These two are huge. According to a few websites they should be right around 2lbs with an average weight of 1.7 for 26 week old fetuses. Well my boys are slightly...ok a lot bigger than that. Baby A is coming in at 2.13lbs and Baby B is coming in at 2.9lbs. They were ahead at my last ultrasound too. Before these last two times they had always been right on track so I know I am not just messed up on the weeks. They are just big boys.

At my Dr appointment I got to do my glucose tolerance test...yum...and turns out I am doing great in that department. I have gained only two more pounds in the last three weeks and he is really happy with my progress. I told him about all that was bothering me like my ribs, my leg falling asleep when I walk, blacking out and he told me its all normal. These babies are just big and getting bigger so expect it to get worse. I expected that but it still stinks. No bed rest for me though, I just need to rest when I can and take breaks and take it easy.

I also told him about my braxton hicks contractions. He said that if they become regular and happen as close as fifteen minutes apart for an hour I need to go to Labor and delivery right away. It totally has me hypersensitive now. Here's hoping that doesn't happen.

So that's my days adventure.

Week 26

Yay! So the weeks are moving along nicely and I am steadily getting bigger and bigger. Today was not so fun though. I was sitting at church during sacrament and started to feel the cold sweats, light headed and nausea. I knew what that meant because I have felt it before. I was about to black out. Luckily sacrament was almost over so I asked my Dad to drive me home. I knew that it was because of the weight of the babies pressing down on important arteries and cutting off circulation. All I needed to do to remedy the situation was to lay on my side. As soon as I got home I laid down and I felt better pretty quickly after that. It is defiantly time for me to start taking it easy. I am going to talk to my Dr. about it on Wednesday and see what he has to say.

I am putting myself on modified bed rest as of today. Bed rest bums me out but whenever I do anything to "crazy"...like sit for an hour...I start to pass out. No beuno. Its what is best for the babies and me. Whatever keeps them in longer so they can grow strong and healthy is want I need to do.

Week 25

So I dont have a side shot of my belly this week but I have some good ones from my shower.

You can see how huge my belly is...

 And this is as good of a side shot as I got at the shower.

On the update front, my tummy is rapidly growing it looks and feels like. I can no longer comfortably fit into my maternity jeans that have the full panel. I went out and bought some low rise maternity jeans that would sit below my belly and low and behold, I FIT INTO A SMALLER SIZE! I was so happy. I am actually wearing the size pants I was when I got married. Totally made my day.

Another new thing for me is my feet have started to really swell. After the shower my feet looked like footballs. Also the babies are getting really big and have started really kicking at my ribs. Yesterday I swear one of them popped out (ribs, not a baby) and it was so painful. Luckily it stopped hurting during the night. I can tell that I am losing that battle of staying active. Walking around or being up for more that 20 minutes really is taking a toll on me. It will all be worth it though when I get to hold these two little boys finally.

My Baby Shower

So last Saturday was my baby shower and I have to say...it was pretty dang awesome. We had to have it early because of the possibility of going on bed rest. Plus I am starting to get really uncomfortable and pretty huge so it was just a good time. 

My mom made cupcakes and displayed them beautifully. The theme for the shower was a pond so she made a bunch that looked like sand with rocks, and some that looked like water. I made gum paste lotus blossoms and my sister made the lilly pads. There are also a few frogs hiding in there.

We had a huge turn out. I am guessing around 65 people or so. I couldn't believe it. I really couldn't believe how many presents I got.

My Mom and I decided to keep the games to a minimum and just play one game that would really take everyone paying attention to. So she wanted to play the baby food game...awful game. The way it goes is that everyone of the guests guesses what each of ten baby food jars contains. Then after everyone guesses I get to taste each one and tell you what it is. Baby food is so gross. I feel so bad feeding anyone that. I don't know if I will be able to feed my boys that stuff.

I got so many cute and useful things at my shower. I was really overwhelmed by all that kindness everyone showed me. I cannot wait to use all this stuff on my two babies.

Week 22...They are BOYS!!!

So today I went to my mid pregnancy ultrasound...finally! Dealing with my insurance here has been a pain and that was the reason for it taking so long to get things worked out. Today I wanted to confirm the gender of the twins even though I had been told by my Dr that one defiantly looked like a girl and one was probably a girl. Well, turns out he was WRONG! I am having two boys. As you can see from the pictures above there is a little something extra there between the legs. I am really excited. I called Brett and woke him up with the news. He was so excited. I called the family and let them all know. Everyone is thrilled. Now I just need to re-register.

Catching up

Week 19

 Week 20

 Week 21

I know I have been bad at posting these on here lately...whoops. Thanks to Sharon I have at least been taking the pictures each week. Nothing new really happened prior to this week so not much was missed. This week though is another story. I have been able to feel the babies move for weeks now but no one else has. Yesterday though I was watching TV and I had my hands resting on my belly...where else would they go??? All of a sudden I feel movement. At first I thought it was just me feeling it from the inside and just translating the experience to my hand since it was there. So I decided to press a little harder. Nope, for sure I was able to feel the kick with my hand. I immediately called my sister over to feel it. She was able to feel a kick right away. Later my Mom was able to SEE my belly move and she felt one of them having hiccups! I am so excited. I wish Brett could feel it. Its sad that he isn't here to share this all with me but he is glad that all three of us are safe and sound here.

While I am on the subject of Brett, I just want to publicly say that Brett is the most amazing and supportive husband. He was great through the craziness of my first trimester and put up with all my crying and freak outs. Since we have been apart he calls whenever he can and on weekends we get to chat on a web cam. We even reinstated movie dates (we watch the same movie at the same time while we are on the phone). I don't many guys that would do all that. Even though he is half a world away he makes me feel like I am the most special person in the world. He is going to be an amazing father because he is already an amazing husband.

Week 18

Growing, growing, growing. I went into see my new OB here on Wednesday and I have to say, I am very happy with him. I wasn't quite sure how I would like having a male doctor because I have had females only up to this point. He was great though. He answered all my questions and gave great advice. Things I was worried about he calmly explained to me. He measured my belly and I was already measuring at 30 weeks...I cant wait to see what I will look like at 30 weeks!

So updates for this week are that the babies are kicking a lot more than they have before. They really react to orange juice and jump around a lot anytime I drink it. I am actually down a size from before I was pregnant. I asked the doctor about that and he said nicely, that since I wasn't the smallest girl out there that it was ok if I lost a little weight it wouldn't hurt the babies. As long as I don't go crazy everything will be fine. This week I think I am finally going to graduate into maternity shirts. All my shirts I have been using are not quite long enough anymore. Cravings are not really there for me...other than coke. Oh what I wouldn't give to sit down with a 2 liter of Coke right now. Its more of food aversions that I have been dealing with. Eggs and greasy food make me gag just thinking about them. So far this pregnancy has been great. I can't really complain too much.

Looks Like We're Having...

GIRLS!!!!!

Its not a 100% according to the Dr until the 20 week ultrasound but it looks pretty good from what I can tell. I really thought that they would be girls so it looks like the intuition is kicking in already!


Here is the spine of one of the GIRLS :D

Here is the butt shot. Here little legs are crossed at the moment.

I think this is a view of the arms...

Here is the head and body...

Not sure...

Another leg view...

I love seeing my babies move around, it makes this all so much more real. Now knowing there is a strong possibly that they are girls is getting me even more excited for these babies to come, and I was already super excited. The Dr I went to in Whittier was great. When he measured my fundal height he, he was I was already measuring at 30 weeks! I couldn't believe it...that's huge. But that is to be expected with two babies growing like crazy inside me.

I was able to email Brett and tell him the happy news. He is sooooo thrilled. He is jokingly concerned about being highly out numbered. Brett is going to be a great Dad. I am so excited to hold our babies in August.

Week 17

The babies are getting bigger and moving more and more. Today they actually woke me up from a nap by moving so much. I love it! It is such an amazing feeling. I am totally in love with these little peas.

Week 16

Yay! 16 weeks down and I have to say, the second trimester is a heck of a lot better than the first. I love it so far. Now that I am back in the states, I went shopping for jeans in an actual store and tried a couple on til I found a pair that I liked. I went with the full panel kind and I LOVE THEM! So comfy. I am definatly getting to the point where people know I am pregnant and not just fat which makes me so happy. The morning sickness is still around but no where near what it was before. I also felt the babies move this week! It was so neat! I had three, what I think were kicks on the left side and then one right after on the right side. I have to be really still in order to feel them but I am pretty sure these are kicks and not gas. I wish Brett was here to enjoy this with me. He was such a great support through my crazys of the first trimester and now he is missing out on the fun of the second. He is the only thing that could make this time perfect. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers while he is still in Japan.

Oh! If anyone has baby stuff that they are looking to get rid of let me know! I had to leave all of our baby stuff in Japan so I have to start over.

Hello Second Trimester!

Week 14 is here and along with it a more noticeable bump is starting to form. For the past few weeks I have been able to feel a difference and have had to move onto maternity wears since my jeans could no longer close. Luckily I am starting to show and not just look like I have gained weight. I am so excited to be in second trimester. At the last doctors appointment we were able to see our little peas moving and dancing around and we defiantly noticed how much more they look like babies...human babies that it. Our next ultrasound is in four weeks and we should be able to find out the gender by then. One not so fun thing we found out at the Dr. apt was that we will have to travel down to Okinawa a whole month earlier than we planned so now we have exactly 10 weeks to prepare for the arrival of these little ones...not much time at all. We are trying to narrow down what can wait to be purchased after their arrival home and what needs to be bought before we leave, unfortunately most of those things are very pricey. I totally think they should give twin parents a half off coupon on ever thing because twin things are sooooo expensive! We will make due, we always do. Any advice you are willing to throw my way, please do!

The Twins' Second Ultrasound

I need suggestions!

So I basically have only this second trimester to get ready for this baby. Since I am considered high risk since I am pregnant with twins, the doctors told me I will need to go down to the base on the southern end of Japan at 28 weeks. Reason being is they have a NICU just in case any complications arise. Obviously once I am there it will be much harder to plan and prepare for these babies...so I have 15 weeks at most to buy everything I need. We have been buying diapers like crazy. We have one crib so far and a changing table. We have a wipe warmer and a diaper genie, some really cute onsies. One play mat and that's about it. I really need help knowing what to buy and what really is just a waste of money. So PLEASE tell me what you have found to be essentials! I would really, really appreciate it.

Week 11

I always thought it was so cute when pregnant friends did belly shots along their pregnancy. Since everyone I love other than Brett is across the Pacific I have decided to do this also to more involve friends and family with the pregnancy.

Before we found out we were having twins I kept on telling Brett that I thought I was further along because my stomach was getting bigger than it was supposed to by this point. While I was being examined by the doctor she commented that she thought my uterus was really large for the point I was at also. Turns out I am right on track week wise, I just have made room for two. I am supposed to get big pretty quickly so it will be fun to look back at these one day and see how it all looked.