33 weeks...it's getting closer!!!

Almost 33 weeks with my oldest friend, Stephanie Hopperton Perry, who is due 2 months after me. :)
She's not even wearing maternity clothes yet. :)

Monday was my triple header at Alexian Brothers. I was literally there ALL afternoon.
First, my final ultrasound with Maternal Fetal Medicine, or for those of you who are easily tongue-twisted like me, MFM. I got to spend some time laughing and relaxing with my favorite tech, Angela. Golly, I missed her!!! She even hooked me up with some vitamins and nursing/supplementing supplies from Similac, too. Cool! Here's the stat's you're looking for, though:
Baby A: 5 lbs. 6 oz, breech (yikes! What happened, Baby A?) 76th %ile
Baby B: 4 lbs. 14 oz, transverse breech (bottom down, but body leaning diagonally) 67th %ile
No wonder I feel like I've been a dance floor--these guys have been tap dancing on my hip bones, and a few other less-savory locations. And here I was blaming it all on little B, and A's getting into trouble now, too. ;)
Basically, A's on the left, head up, and B is almost leaning on A's shoulder.

There's Baby B with Brooks' nose!

Baby A--that looks more like Mommy's nose than Daddy's! Could it be??? A baby that looks like Mommy?

And yes, if you do the math, that's over 10 lbs of baby in my tummy! There's a lovely midwife-intern that started my visit named Marzena (cool name, huh?) that I've seen at several other visits. She let me know that that's in addition to 4 lbs of placenta and however much amniotic fluid. Then there's all the excess blood volume...no wonder folks at work are shocked I'm still around! The Lord has truly strengthened me through this to help me get this far while still working, and being part time has helped a lot. And I have this wonderful teaching partner and teaching team. I am so thankful for them every day! It amazes me: I really liked my team at my previous school a lot, no complaints at all, and I still like them! Yet with this team, I feel like I just fit right in, like I've always been there or something. It's such a gift from the Lord, and it really makes a big difference. I also have some other supportive staff at school as well, but I don't work with them the same way, and not necessarily as often. Still good stuff, great people, though! So thankful, and it's not even Thanksgiving anymore! But I digress...
My next appointment was in L&D for an NST (non-stress test). I am not thankful for these, but hopefully the next one won't be so long. The hard part about these is not sitting there with 3 monitors on me (1 for each baby and 1 for contractions, which I never have when I'm there), or while they find the babies to put the monitors on to check their heart rates, but laying almost horizontal for however long it takes to get a "good read". This is ideally 20 minutes of good reactive behavior: their heart rates fluctuate within a certain range as they move or respond to stimuli, like contractions, my movement, etc. However, with at least 14 lbs on a major vein, I get light headed for an extended time during and after this test. If I sit up more, the babies move around too much to be monitored. The plan for next time is to put a pillow under one of my hips to avoid direct pressure on my veins, thus eliminating the dizzy feeling. About 50 minutes after the original start time, I finished the NST and got escorted by wheelchair the "back way" (which is much shorter!) to my actual office appointment, right on time. I did still have to wait, since Liz was downstairs in L&D with a patient, but she came back up and saw me.
At the office visit, after chatting with Marzena, Liz came in and I picked her brain about c-sections, scheduling vs. not, and other c-section questions. I'm not hoping for one or planning on one, but now that we have 2 breech babies, it's something to prepare mentally for. It's still possible for them to turn, but it's also still possible to try to for a vaginal delivery with A and still end up needing a c-section for B. So much to think about! One thing is for sure--I will need to get an epidural because it's either that or general anesthesia if there's an "emergent" c-section, and general isn't good for babies or me (I won't be alert during the birth, and other further complications). I'm a little bummed, but I'm also told that one painful epidural placement doesn't guarantee me another one. Really, I am very blessed to have had 2 natural, unmedicated (besides pitocin to induce labor) births like I wanted to. This birth is sure to be an exciting time either way, so hopefully it will be smoother and safe for all involved, too.I came home around 6:30 to dinner already made (thanks, Brooks!) and thoughts about the babies coming, and all that will change in my life when they arrive. I think I'm back in the denial stage about how crazy and exhausting it's going to be, or else God has just blessed my socks off with a peace that truly passes all understanding (and I'll take that, too!!)

Uncle John giving Elliott a good tickle. :)

 I'm SUPER grateful for all the help Uncle John and Aunt Nancy gave us last week when they visited, between house work, yard work, entertaining the kids, and giving us the opportunity to go out for breakfast to celebrate Brooks' birthday. I can't thank them enough!

Nancy and Elliott

Then, after a pretty relaxing Thanksgiving, with so much family pitching in with food and clean up, Heidi and Mom put together a little surprise diaper shower for me! I was so excited, grateful, and overwhelmed with joy to be blessed that way! We got several boxes of diapers and wipes from family and friends, present in body and in spirit. It was casual and fun and relaxing, and helped put my mind at ease about having the bare necessities for when these babies arrive.

Heidi and Erin

We'll still need to invest in some more cloth diaper inserts, but I won't be worried about laundry when I need to be nursing 2 babies around the clock, and that's such a relief!

Heidi and Jillian

So, I have been thinking about downsizing how much I carry (if I can carry anything at all with 2 babies in my arms!) and my super-gal-pal Bethi, aka Disney Mommi, is doing a giveaway as a fitness ambassador. It's for a SPIbelt, which looks like something that would hold my necessities while freeing up my hands, so I've entered her drawing to win one! If you want, you can, too, until December 1st. Check it out below by clicking the hyperlink.


http://www.disneymommi.com/2012/11/spi-belt-giveaway-at-disneymommi.html?showComment=1354077434434#c8290668174514898899

In regards to ultrasound pictures, I'll post those once I get the camera back in shape--the battery is being wimpy, so I need to find the charger for it, or another battery, or both, before I can upload. I'll let you know when I update this post with pics. Until then, check out Disney Mommi! :)