More Ethan commentary...

I can't get enough of Ethan talking...it's so funny. He's like our little commentator/narrator. In case you don't know what's going on, Ethan will inform you.

"Mommy talking to daddy"..."Mommy all done talking to daddy"..."Mommy eating Cheerios"..."Daddy working tools"..."Daddy cooking in kitchen"...

It's so cute...and I always know what Andy is up to around the house...because my little man comes to tell me what's up.

There's some bossiness that comes along with the talking, but it's so cute, that I can't help but laugh at it...."Wake up, Mommy"..."Get up, Mommy"..."Sit there, Daddy"..."Go away, tractor/car/anything that's in his way"...

And sometimes it is funny, but not so fun to hear...like how he likes to point out how Mommy is too big to do this or too big to do that...but sometimes he'll throw a Gamma is too big or Daddy is too big so I don't think that he's picking on my belly. And it's typically about playing with his toys...like Mommy is too big to stand on the train or Mommy is too big to walk on the car slide...so I'm not too bummed that I'm too big :>

The enthusiasm that comes along with all this talking is heart-melting. Primarily, the "I love you, Mommy"s...but yesterday he came running into the house after being out at the store with Daddy and was so excited. He came running over to me and said "I picked it out, Mommy...I picked it out"...talking about our Christmas tree. It is too much.

***

I have stopped sleeping with the snoogle the past couple nights because it makes me too hot. But the absence of the body pillow isn't doing anything to help my poor hips. Andy did some stretches on me this morning and they did help a little bit. While slowly getting off the couch this afternoon, I joked to him that I needed to be hooked up like a puppet...like a marionette...with strings attached to my feet so that when I stand up I could just pull on the strings to move my legs. My hips are so stiff after sitting/laying that it really takes a couple painful steps before they start working like they are supposed to.

Today is the last day of November...I wasn't supposed to be pregnant in December, but I'm glad that I will be. Hope I'm not jumping the gun here...it is only 3:30!

33w pic

33w 2d. I passed the fFN again. It was negative. The nurse told me that it will be my last since they don't run them after 34 weeks...since they run them every 2 weeks and I'm 34 weeks next week, this one was my last.

I'm actually starting to let myself believe that we might take two babies HOME with us when I'm discharged from the hospital after their birth. Whoa.

33 week appt...

Another dull appointment today. I haven't received the results of the fetal fibronectin test she took this morning, so maybe "dull" isn't the way to describe the appointment, but a few hours will tell. It was the first time that she really discussed what we would do if it comes back positive...I am guessing she thinks it will. All that means is that it's likely I'd go into labor within the next 2 weeks...35...that wouldn't be so bad. If it's positive, she wouldn't run any more tests...since we would assume that they'd all result in positive results.

I'm still contracting and cramping a ton, but my cervix isn't doing a damn thing...it was still closed when she checked today...which is good, obviously, but I really wish my body would just stop practicing so much!! My dr thinks it's unlikely that there would be any decrease in contractions from now on...just one time, they will be real. Sometimes, the body starts practicing earlier in the 20-weeks and then there's a lull until real labor, but since I've been contracting so much in the early 30s too, there's no reason to believe any lull is in sight. Bummer.

One thing the maternal fetal medicine clinic (the clinic that does my biophysical ultrasounds (BPPs)) wanted me to ask my dr was if they should do the next growth ultrasound or if my clinic should do it. The next one would be on the 17th, at 36 weeks. She responded, well, you'll probably never get there, but it's a good idea for the other clinic to do it...apparently, I am getting to the point where it's harder for my primary clinic to do my ultrasounds (too much baby in there) and I really need a Level 2. Fine by me, since I'll be going to the MFM clinic for weekly BPPs anyways....less getting in and out of the car (which is crazy hard!). Actually, after she told me I'd probably never make it to 36, she recanted and said that hey, maybe I would...all our other predictions of how long I'd make it were wrong, so maybe our pessimism is helping us. 36 weeks is the ultimate goal now...the 18th...(Happy Birthday, Anne T on the 17th!). At 36 weeks, I'd no longer need to have my Progesterone shots, should no longer be taking the Terbutaline and the best part is, we'd likely be able to take the babies home with us!! Wonder what that's like!! That being said, I have still picked December 6th in an unofficial baby pool with some ex-co-workers/friends of mine.

Something interesting is that I have gained 5lbs in the past week putting my total at 43lbs. Hurray, I have met the 20lbs per baby recommendation! The interesting part of the 5lb gain is that my appetite has been seriously decreased for about the last 2 weeks. So, I think I can blame some of the 5lbs on turkey dinner yesterday...thanks to my in-laws and Andy for cooking! My dr said that decreased appetite and nausea (I've been having that too, mostly in the early evening) is really common in the late third trimester due to my shrinking capacity for food, so I should just try to eat little snacks/meals throughout the day. I'll give it my best try, but I really only feel like eating fried eggs and ice cream...not together. She said that even though I might not be eating a lot, the babies are grasping onto everything I am eating and that's probably where the weight gain is going...to them (good...they can take it with them when they are born too :>). They are in fat-gain mode and bulking up for the outside world. Plus, I am probably not burning a lot of calories while on bedrest.

Babies' heartrates were 130 (A) and 135/140 (B)...typical variance between the two and a little slower than usual, but 120-160 is a normal range...

We missed the 32-week picture, but we'll take a 33-week picture today and post that soon. I noticed this morning that I am becoming more "shelf-life" on top. I might have seen a stretch mark and consulted with Jen about it last Wednesday. She didn't think it was one since stretch marks usually happen on the lower part of the belly and this purple line was right in the middle...whatever it is, she thinks it will go away. Phew.

Ethan says...

I try to write down the cute things that Ethan is saying so that I can blog about them every so often, but who am I kidding...everything he says is cute. Here are a few things from the past few days...

Ethan likes to announce to me, while pointing at Andy, "That's my daddy!"

I have become part of the car track. Since I am often laying on the couch when Ethan is playing in the living room, he drives his trucks and cars over me...starting at one end of the sectional, over me, and then parks them at the other end....he says, "Over Mommy!" as he drives them over me.

Ethan was standing in his Fischer Price animal train, the engine part, a couple nights ago and said "Ethan stand on train"...then followed that up with "Mommy too big stand on train"...thanks.

Last night Ethan was telling me about how he went to the mall with Gamma, and how he goes to the mall with daddy too. I asked him if he wanted to go to the mall with Mommy when Mommy's tummy wasn't so big and he said "Mommy's tummy go to mall"...apparently it is welcome to join us on the trip.

*****

We are starting off Thanksgiving with cartoons and donuts. Ethan is wearing a new pair of footie pajamas from Gamma. He is very excited about them and points to his feet saying "My feet, my feet!"

Today I am 33 weeks, and although I am having tons of contractions, I don't think we'll be having any Thanksgiving babies. A couple weeks ago, Thanksgiving was the ultimate goal...if we could only make it to 33 weeks...and now we're here!! We have lots to be thankful for. Enjoy the Holiday weekend!

I make good babies...

I need to take another belly picture...I'm 32w 6d today, but I haven't taken my 32-week picture. There's really not much of a noticeable difference from week to week, if you ask me. I'm still WAY out in front...I'm big...and that's for me to say, not you :>

Today I had another biophysical ultrasound, and a growth ultrasound too. The tech started with Baby A's head and asked me where they've come in on their past growth ultrasounds...average, larger than normal? When I told her they've been about a week ahead of their gestational age, she said "I'm asking because A's head measures at around 35/36 weeks"...so, I had to explain the whole "Sandbergs have big heads" thing again...B's head measured big too...around 34 weeks, but she couldn't get a really good view of him due to his position, so it's probably bigger than that...he's been the big guy all along.

After the other measurements, she estimated A to be 4lbs 9oz and B to be 4lbs 13oz. That's a lot of baby in there!! I am so glad to hear these estimated weights!! I had guessed that B would be around 4.5 lbs and A a little less...they were just over 3lbs and just under 3lbs at my last growth US about 4 weeks ago. At 32w 1d, on his birthday, Ethan weighed 4lbs 15oz...so for twins to weigh close to that at just a few days older is super great!! Their percentiles are right around 50th...A was 46th and B was 54th...I'm assuming that's based on overall size, because their heads would certainly be a higher percentile than that!

They both passed their biophysicals too...we had to wait about 15 minutes for B to show the practice breathing and I just about passed out laying still on my back for that long, but eventually he did it. They both have good fluid still too.

So, they scheduled me for my next 3 biophysicals...they are weekly from now on...it seems so weird to schedule appointments out to mid December, but who knows...they've surprised me this far!! Keep up the good growing, kiddos!

32w 1d

Not having any "exciting" updates at 32w 1d is a really good thing...but it will make for a very boring post.

Yesterday I had my doctor appointment and it was the fastest visit ever. They took my weight (no gain since last week...out to the decimal point...I eat ice cream every night and will continue to do so)...checked my blood pressure...measured my belly...listened to the babies' heartbeats. Then we just talked...She confirmed that they would induce no earlier than 38 weeks (Jan 1...although I think it's a tad bit premature to worry about having the boys in 2009 vs this year) but she was 99% sure I would go into labor on my own before then...I asked if I needed to worry about contractions if I had a negative result to my last fetal fibronectin. They are like 95% accurate, but it shouldn't give me a full sense of security and I should use my best judgement about the severity of my contractions and come in when needed (she told me not to be afraid to cry wolf)...and they can't predict when your water is going to break. So, they might tell me I'm unlikely to go into labor with contractions, but my water could break at any time apparently. That was it...

This morning was the biophysical ultrasound and both boys passed with flying colors. They are still both taking practice breaths (I also learned that taking in some amniotic fluid into their lungs helps with lung development...this part of the exam shows that their brains are teaching their bodies how to breathe). They both have enough fluid, good heartrates, healthy placentas....And my cervical exam showed that it's still closed. I got two GREAT pictures of B's face...he looks like he's smiling...I can't look at it without tearing up. We tried to get A too, but the poor guy, no matter what position the two of them are in (transverse or vertex), is always squished against something. His face is pressed right up against my cervix...so he's the one that makes me jump every so often.

I have some more appointments next week, despite it being a Holiday week. When the hospital called to schedule my ultrasounds, they asked if I was going out of town, which I thought was really stupid...I just said "Um, no"...but seriously...should I be traveling far from home right now? I won't even let Andy go to Northfield to hunt and that's like 40 minutes away!! (I would "let" him, but I would pout about it)

Anyways, next Wednesday is my shot and another biophysical ultrasound, plus a growth ultrasound, at the hospital perionatology clinic where I was at today. Since everything has to be "ordered" by a doctor and a growth US hadn't been ordered for today I wasn't able to get estimates on their weights...but they sure did look quite a bit bigger to me. It will have been 4 weeks since my last growth ultrasound by the time I have the next one on Wednesday so I'm expecting quite an increase in weight. Next week on Friday I have another appointment with my doctor.

All the medical personnel at my appointments seem to get all cheerleady with me when I get great results like today. I'm excited too, but I don't clap my hands and jump up and down and hug people (they like to give me hugs) like they do...I guess I am just cautiously optimistic. I keep running through my head the comments from my dr earlier in my pregnancy...the first was when we first found out we were having two babies and she told us that it didn't mean we'd take home two babies, or even one (uplifting, right?...she's much more personal now)...and the second comment was several weeks later when things were going fine and she said that twins can be doing great one day and cause trouble the next. So...I take things day by day...really. At 32w 1d, 7:30pm, it looks like these boys are going to beat their older brother in gestational age...Tomorrow will be the most pregnant (time-wise, not size-wise!! :>) I have ever been!!

"31" week picture and updates...

31.5 weeks in this picture taken a couple days ago...could be the angle, or the lack of zoom, but it doesn't look as big as some of the recent weeks' pictures...




















Had my 32-week shot today. Holy crap, the boys are 32 weeks tomorrow!! Ethan was born at 32w 1d. I can't believe that it is likely that I will make it longer with twins than with my first baby. Although, I would have gone into Labor and Delivery last night, but noone answered the after-hours line at my clinic when I called around 10pm. I was having some nasty contractions close together last night. The terbutaline was NOT helping at all. I finally just went to bed and hoped for the best. I woke up around 2am and took some more pills...then fell back asleep until 6am. That's the longest stretch of sleep that I've had in the middle of the night for awhile now. Usually, once I wake up once, I'm up every hour until the rest of the house wakes up. I've been feeling fine today...just a couple contractions that have been isolated. Jen told me to go in if it happens again tonight...and that in instances like last night I should just go in to L&D and call them on my way letting them know I can't get ahold of my clinic. I really just need to come to grips that anytime I call the clinic with questions they are going to tell me to go in...with my history, noone is going to tell me to just chill out and put my worries aside...so it makes sense that I should just go to L&D and keep trying to call them on the way.

Tomorrow morning is my weekly doctor's appointment again...already! The weeks are going by pretty fast...each day, not so much, but the weeks...they go by fast. I'm interested to see if the contractions have been doing anything or if they are indeed "fake"...they don't feel fake! In the afternoon, one of my co-workers is coming over with her baby boy (born mid August) to drop off bins of clothes for us. She had twin boys first (a month younger than Ethan), and her singleton second. It will be nice to get lots of 0-3m clothes for the boys...we pretty much just kept Ethan in onesies and blankets when he was first home and through the winter because we really didn't go anywhere....but it will be nice to have lots of stuff so I don't have to stress about keeping up with laundry.

Friday morning is the second biophysical ultrasound. I'm so excited to see the boys again and to get an estimate on what their weights are. Our last ultrasound was about 3 weeks ago, so I'm guessing them to be close to 4lbs each, maybe more. Three weeks ago they were estimated to be 3lbs 3oz (B) and 2lbs 13oz (A)...

In other news...

We were turning a corner with Ethan at bedtime recently. The last few nights, Andy has come down from his room and said "He's an angel"...he's no longer taking a bottle of milk at night, just decided one night that he didn't want it. So Daddy and Ethan read books together, brush teeth and then turn on the turtle night-light to blue together (it projects stars on the ceiling/walls)...then he gets tucked in while they say "Night-night" and "I love you"...Andy leaves the room without any protesting by Ethan. It's only been a couple of nights that this has been going on, and last night was a total snafu so hopefully we're not going backwards.

Ethan went to Toddler Tuesdays at the MOA with Gamma yesterday for the premier of the movie Wall-E. He sat in his very own movie chair with apple juice and popcorn and watched 90 minutes of the movie!! He came home with a poster which we hung in his room last night...he's very excited about Wall-E and his girlfriend Eve.

Ethan's had a cold, but has been a pretty good sport about it...not too fussy, but really cuddly!! He needs constant hugs and kisses...tough job for us! I wish this phase could last forever, without the cold. One thing that's bad about the cold is that he hates to have his nose wiped...like all kids probably...he thinks it's really funny to sniff in...he's a snot sucker...it's gross. So he's sniffs in and then laughs, blowing snot back out. Obvs, it's super gross, but it's a good strategy to get him with the kleenex since I can't get him to blow his nose...when I say "blow out"...he blows air out of his mouth like he's trying to whistle. Maybe I need to be more specific.

Now what?

In the morning, when we have just woken up, Ethan has his morning milk while watching cartoons with us in our bed. He insists on bringing at least 2, sometimes 3, of his own blankets into our bed. It's cute because he wants us to snuggle with "Ethan's blue blankets" and likes to snuggle into "Mommy and Daddy's covers and pillows"...When pregnant, I sleep with a ginormous body pillow called the snoogle and sometimes when Andy gets up to go shower, Ethan will climb over the pillow so he's snuggled right up next to me...today was one of those mornings. He grabbed his 2 blankets, climbed over the snoogle pillow and was laying right next to me with his head on my pillow...then looked at me and said, "Now what?"...I laughed and said "Just lay here and snuggle"...he cracks me up.

I need a tissue.

I'm trying to keep my pregnancy hormones in check...who I am kidding, I cry really easily when I'm not pregnant too. I'm just emotional.

Ethan has been working at my heart strings...this evening he was telling me who he loves and who loves who..."Mommy loves daddy"..."I love Ethan"...then he said "Mommy Daddy Ethan happy"...it's too much. Good tears.

31-week appointment recap

Contractions, contractions, contractions...the bane of my existence! It's all I do, counting contractions...and somewhere in there, I do some cross-stitching.

Wednesday night was really bad. I was up nearly every hour with painful contractions. A couple times I thought "it was time"...but after counting two contractions over 15 minutes, I fell asleep. Must not have been that serious. Since I made it through the night, I proudly stated to my doctor at Thursday morning's appointment that I had made it a whole week without making a trip to Labor and Delivery (my last trip was Wed Nov 5)...I was no longer her "problem child"...at least for that week!

My appointment yesterday went well. I gained another 1.8 lbs over the past week...total weight gain = 38.8lbs; my blood pressure is good; I measure over 40 weeks for singletons; baby's heart rates were 140 and 145; cervix is closed, but she can feel someone's (probably A's) head right there; did another fetal fibronectin and I found out in the afternoon that it was negative again.

We talked about my continuing contractions and since they are not in any sort of pattern, she is not alarmed. Most are not painful, I can just feel the tightening, but some have been doozies. I have read, and have been told by my doctor, that this is just my uterus practicing for labor...to that I say "Uterus, you have mastered this skill...please lay off." I asked for a prescription for Terbutaline and filled that yesterday at Target...I haven't taken any yet since my contractions since then haven't been painful and didn't wake me up last night much...Terb has a lot of yucky side-effects, but it's nice to know I have it nearby just in case. I'm sure I was quite the spectacle at Target...my hips are shot so I'm a full-fledged waddler...and the pharmacist told me I looked like I was going to pop any minute. Nice.

I think my MetLife claim is moving in the right direction. My doctor had received a faxed medical form from MetLife that morning (still pissed that it took until Thursday, from when I called for the second time on Monday, to get a request to my doctor) and she confirmed my last day of work with me so we were on the same page. She promised to fill it out and fax back yesterday afternoon. So I'll call MetLife next week to make sure they have it and are reviewing. There will probably be a lag for my next check (still got paid in full yesterday since my first week of bedrest was required to be PTO), but I'm hopeful the rest of this process will run smoothly. I've alerted HR that I'm having issues and they confirmed I'm taking the right steps...but it's so irritating still.

I brought up delivery options again and now I'm back on the C-section train. I go back and forth, weighing the pros and cons of each...for the babies first, and for me too. I have too much time on my hands to think about this stuff. I think we'll play it by ear, but she did confirm that it is our decision and we can make it up to the last minute.

I have several appointments next week...Shot on Wed, doctor appt on Thurs, biophysical US on Friday...Next Thursday will be 32 weeks...wow! Today I am 31w 1d...this is right around the time I went into labor with Ethan the first time. So, even though I'm getting into my "comfort zone", I hope these guys aren't in as much of a rush as their older brother. My cervix being closed and negative results for the fetal fibronectin could certainly lead to 1-2 more weeks, or more if we are lucky.

Yesterday, Gamma Leslie brought over some treats to celebrate our making it one more week. Each Thursday will be celebrated as a "non-Birthday"! They are chocolate-peanut butter bars and are delicious...Ethan celebrated the non-Birthday yesterday and exclaimed..."I love this non-Birthday cake"...."More non-Birthday cake, please!"...too funny! (see pic below)














I was encouraged after yesterday's appointment and was motivated to do some serious cross-stitching yesterday afternoon. Since I have the feeling now that I will make it at least one more week, I think I could actually finish this thing. Yesterday I finished all the cross-stitching and just started the back-stitching at the end of the day...after that will come the names, weights, and birthdate and then over a hundred dollars worth of matting and framing...voila! (see pic below)

30-week pic

Eek, I'm so veiny. I noticed this the other day while checking for stretch marks (none yet, knock on wood) in the mirror...but you can really see my blood vessels in this picture and it's really creepy. It's fall/winter in MN...and I have not seen a tanning booth since early May...it is what it is.

Ethan speaks and speaks and speaks....

Ethan has been saying so many things lately...this list doesn't even capture 1/10th of them...

He's really into saying who he loves and who loves him..."Ethan loves so and so"..."So and so loves Ethan"...with emphasis on the "loves"...He's now saying "Everybody loves Ethan" and "Ethan loves Ethan"...

Gramma Nanna and Grampa Dode sent him a fitted Cars sheet and Cars pillow case. He is so excited about it and when it was put on his bed this morning, he saw it and said "Ooooooo!"...and later he said "I love it!" He is excited to have his own pillow too...when he has his morning milk with us in our bed, he loves to snuggle into "Mommy and daddy's pillows and covers"...now he has his own pillow and thinks it's great. When I asked him who was on his sheets he said "Mater and Queen" (Lightnight McQueen)..."Another Mater and Queen...Another Mater and Queen"...the pattern repeats itself on the sheet so there are lots of Maters and Queens.''

He repeats almost everything we say and is so proud of himself. I laugh until I tear up a lot. Some favorites from this weekend... "Whatcha doin' daddy?" and "That's alright"

He is also getting good at telling stories or recounting what happened that day or the day before. I am amazed at his memory. He was telling Gamma about visiting Mommy in the hospital and then said "Mommy loves Ethan"...too cute.

There are full sentences too. We were watching Mr Rogers on Sunday morning and he kept saying "At the mall...at the mall" when they were at a store. Then he said, very deliberately...."They. are. at the mall"...that's a full and proper sentence! Hurray!

But one of my favorite things is when he wants to snuggle up with us and says "Oh, mommy...oh, daddy"...I've got to catch these things on video...writing them can't even begin to show the cuteness around here.