The blog has been neglected for the past week, Team Turner has just been busy. Last week I went to my appointment with the new OB we wanted to try out. She is fantastic - we'll definitely be sticking with her and dumping the other one. She agreed that the CVS test was extreme and way too risky for our situation, that was relief. She also said that with my glucose results she didn't feel I needed to do the 3 hour test and I could make the call on how we wanted to proceed. Otherwise we'd do another glucose test at 20 weeks or if anything changed - another good news item! We got another ultrasound of the babies and they looked great, everything is on track. I was excited to learn that my new doctor actually had twins herself so she completely understood the ongoing nausea battle we've been facing. My next appointment will be on November 19th.
On Thursday my worst bout of morning sickness ever started while at work. I decided to eat a salad at my desk for lunch and evidently thats NOT what the babies wanted. They gave me back every bite of salad then some. I think this episode finally cured of my ranch dressing addiction, too. I finally had to leave work and spent the rest of the afternoon draped over the toilet here at home. The nausea and vomiting continued through early Sunday morning. On top of all that I began to get a migraine and my blood sugar was at 200. Needless to say, I was feeling pretty rotten. I called Dr. W about my glucose level and she now has me monitoring it 4 times a day, so far all of the readings have been well within the normal range. We're hoping the scare on Saturday was just from me being so sick. I really think it was just a big hormone surge because overnight my facial skin began to resemble that of a 15 year old boy. Even today at work I had 2 people ask me what happened to my eye. You lose all pride when your only response is that that its just zits. I didn't have acne in high school or jr high so I'm guessing its payback time now.
All in all the babies are doing well and today was much better than the few day before. Hopefully all of the nausea will start winding down with my first trimester wrapping up soon. Its pretty crazy to think we'll be 3 months along on Friday! Where does the time go?
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
More Testing....
We got my test results back from last week. My urine test was good, but my glucose test was outside the normal range and within the range for gestational diabetes. Dr. Everson is having me do a 3 hour glucose test with fasting as soon as I can fit into my schedule. Tomorrow I have a crazy day of meetings at work, and Wednesday morning I have my appt with the other OB we're interested in using. I'm hoping to be able to fit the glucose test in either Thursday or Friday.
According to Dr. E's office, I'll fast beginning at midnight the night before and arrive when the lab opens at 8:30. They'll take my blood prior to me drinking the glucose then I'll drink the glucose and have my blood drawn every hour for 3 hours afterwards. I really think everything will be fine - just sucks that I have to spend 3 hours chilling at the lab. I know there are worse things, so we'll do the test and keep plugging along. I also went and picked up a copy of all my lab results today so that I can take them to the other OB's appt and she can see where we are.
One of my concerns w/Dr. E is that she's requesting a Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS). According to my paperwork, the CVS is done between 10-12 weeks. A needle is placed with ultrasound guidance through the abdomen or cervix, and a biopsy of the placenta is performed. Its suppose to determine the chromosome count for each baby - so I'll have 2 needles through the gut. I'd really like to avoid the test since even if we were to have a baby with Downs Syndrome we wouldn't terminate the pregnancy - so I'm not really seeing a benefit worth the risk involved. This will be once of my first questions for the other OB. As of now our CVS appointment is scheduled a couple of weeks from now, but unless we hear some more persuasive facts we think we'll be canceling. Either way, we'll see how everything goes and keep praying for the best! More to come after Wednesday's appointment.
According to Dr. E's office, I'll fast beginning at midnight the night before and arrive when the lab opens at 8:30. They'll take my blood prior to me drinking the glucose then I'll drink the glucose and have my blood drawn every hour for 3 hours afterwards. I really think everything will be fine - just sucks that I have to spend 3 hours chilling at the lab. I know there are worse things, so we'll do the test and keep plugging along. I also went and picked up a copy of all my lab results today so that I can take them to the other OB's appt and she can see where we are.
One of my concerns w/Dr. E is that she's requesting a Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS). According to my paperwork, the CVS is done between 10-12 weeks. A needle is placed with ultrasound guidance through the abdomen or cervix, and a biopsy of the placenta is performed. Its suppose to determine the chromosome count for each baby - so I'll have 2 needles through the gut. I'd really like to avoid the test since even if we were to have a baby with Downs Syndrome we wouldn't terminate the pregnancy - so I'm not really seeing a benefit worth the risk involved. This will be once of my first questions for the other OB. As of now our CVS appointment is scheduled a couple of weeks from now, but unless we hear some more persuasive facts we think we'll be canceling. Either way, we'll see how everything goes and keep praying for the best! More to come after Wednesday's appointment.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
A Quarter of the Way There
We hit the 10 week mark yesterday - woo hoo! In the past week I completed my 24 hour urine test, glucose test and some additional blood work. We should get the results early next week. This coming Tuesday I have an appointment with an OB that specializes in the delivery of twins and we're going to see how her pregnancy plan compares to Dr. Everson's. I'm happy to say I've been feeling better this week, the vomiting has subsided and the nausea has been easier to deal with, too. I still get amazed at how tired I can become in just a matter of minutes - I know this is normal but it seems like I should have completed a marathon or have at least cleaned my house from top to bottom to feel this type of fatigue.
We have officially graduated from Dr. Gill's office. No more in vitro visits and no more shots. Hallelujah! In our last visit on Thursday the babies put on quiet a show for us. Both were upside down, waving their arms and kicking their legs. I'm pretty sure one of them was doing the sprinkler, so we can safely say Casey's super-deluxe dance moves have been passed on to the next generation of Turners. We got lots of pics and got to hear the hear beats again. They came in at 166 bpm and 170 bpm. We will miss getting to peek in on the babies since we won't have ultrasounds as often, but we know our future ultrasounds will be that much more special.
The nursery is slowly progressing, Piper's bed and the desk are now completely disassembled. My goal today is to work though some of the papers and miscellaneous piles of treasures that are stored in there. Last night Casey and I went and picked out pumpkins and carved a jack-o-latern for each of us. Its pretty crazy to think next year we'll have 4 pumpkins sitting on the front porch. So fun!
And last but not least, my Mammers celebrated her 80th birthday yesterday. Happy birthday, Mamms! The Turner Twins will have the best great-grandmother ever!!!
We have officially graduated from Dr. Gill's office. No more in vitro visits and no more shots. Hallelujah! In our last visit on Thursday the babies put on quiet a show for us. Both were upside down, waving their arms and kicking their legs. I'm pretty sure one of them was doing the sprinkler, so we can safely say Casey's super-deluxe dance moves have been passed on to the next generation of Turners. We got lots of pics and got to hear the hear beats again. They came in at 166 bpm and 170 bpm. We will miss getting to peek in on the babies since we won't have ultrasounds as often, but we know our future ultrasounds will be that much more special.
The nursery is slowly progressing, Piper's bed and the desk are now completely disassembled. My goal today is to work though some of the papers and miscellaneous piles of treasures that are stored in there. Last night Casey and I went and picked out pumpkins and carved a jack-o-latern for each of us. Its pretty crazy to think next year we'll have 4 pumpkins sitting on the front porch. So fun!
And last but not least, my Mammers celebrated her 80th birthday yesterday. Happy birthday, Mamms! The Turner Twins will have the best great-grandmother ever!!!
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Little Bits of Happy News
- I only have to take my progesterone shots every other day, instead of every day (woo hoo!)
- No more estrogen patches or pills
- Only one more visit to Dr. Gill's office
- I picked out our stroller and car seats today (just need Casey's approval)
- I picked out our cribs today (Casey's approval required, too)
- Goer (my grandfather) says I'm having 2 boys - he's been accurate on all 8 grandkids and 5 great grandkids
- Piper's (our cat) room is slowly being cleared out in preparation of becoming a nursery
- I have a spotless house today, thanks to Maids on the Lake
- We'll be getting ready to sell my car in the coming weeks and purchasing a "grocery go-getter"- if only my mom still had her big station wagon with the wood paneling and jump seats in the back...I miss the Dragon Wagon!
- I'm carrying my Casey's babies - makes me smile EVERY time!
Reality Check (long posting)
Wednesday afternoon Casey and I headed to our first appointment with my new OB in The Woodlands. We were both anxious to meet the person who would be taking over Dr. Nebgen's role and to learn more about our babies and what to expect in the coming months. The office visit started out with meeting Dr. Everson and going over my medical history. She did my annual well woman exam and then sent us for some tests and said she'd meet back with us and we'd have the big "pregnancy conversation".
Our first stop was the restroom for a urine sample. I had peed right before leaving work so I was only able to provide literally 2 drops of pee. It was so little that I was actually embarrassed to turn in my urine cup. After urine we moved on to the ultrasound - this was the best!!!
Our babies are now officially known as Twin A and Twin B. Both fetuses were quite active and put on a show for us. Twin A was in a more upright position and moved around every now and then, Twin B would curl up in ball and root around at the bottom of his/her sack. Casey got to hear both heartbeats for the first time and it was obvious he was just as moved as I was the first I heard them, too. The twins are both on track developmentally and growth wise. The best part of the visit came when the Ultrasound Tech suddenly changed the ultrasound screen to the new 4D view. It was unbelievable!!! You could see so much detail and it really made the Turner Twins come to life. We could see eyes, nose, arm buds, leg buds, backs, heads...everything. I think all we could do was gasp as we were able to peek in on our little miracles. They looked just like the little babies on my blog counter! We got lots of pics and even one of the 4D ones to take home, too. Casey and I will definitely be doing the full 4D ultrasound package later on - it was just tooooo fantastic.
After all the ultrasound fun, Dr. Everson met us back in an exam room and thats when it felt like the fun ended. She was very blunt (which was good) and said she had some serious concerns about my pregnancy, not for the babies but more for me. She said that my urine already had protein in it and my blood pressure was high, both are signs of pre-eclampsia (toxemia). She stated that my weight was also a concern (I explained it wasn't my plan to get pregnant while fat) and that with carrying twins I'd need to be closely monitored. Bottom line.. once you're told you're fat, pregnant with twins, have protein in your urine, high blood pressure and have a high risk of gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia- your day will pretty much suck from that point on.
Next week I'll be completing a 24 hour urine test, glucose test and additional blood work. Dr. E is sending me to specialist down in the medical center for another test in about a week or two and then possibly another specialist a few weeks later. We were finally given a due date of May 15th, however she said I'd probably only make it to mid or late April due to the concerns with my pregnancy. She said it would also be a good idea to start preparing for the babies now, as it was very possible I could be on bed rest at 20 weeks. This was when my stomach dropped - 20 WEEKS?!?!?! I struggled for 3 days on bed rest - I can't imagine 3 weeks, much less the entire second half of my pregnancy! I assured Dr. E I would do whatever was necessary to remain as healthy possible and avoid bed rest.
Since our visit I've made some diet changes and Casey and I are walking daily. I'm really working on my water intake and I've cutout sugar all together. Sugar has never been a big thing for me, so this has been easy. I love the creamy, cheesy and greasy stuff like pizza with ranch dressing, fettuccine alfredo and cheese of any kind - these foods have been eliminated, too. Today I tested my blood sugar, just out of curiosity, and was very happy to see it was 98 after eating. This news also helped Casey relax a bit more, too. I really didn't expect any of the news we received on Wednesday, but Casey and I have agreed to take it in stride and do whatever is necessary to not make things any worse. It just seemed like so much to absorb in our first OB visit and to only be 9 weeks along - I thought getting pregnant and the nausea and vomiting would be the hard part - not so. Good news is the babies are great and with the changes we've made hopefully I will be, too!
Our first stop was the restroom for a urine sample. I had peed right before leaving work so I was only able to provide literally 2 drops of pee. It was so little that I was actually embarrassed to turn in my urine cup. After urine we moved on to the ultrasound - this was the best!!!
Our babies are now officially known as Twin A and Twin B. Both fetuses were quite active and put on a show for us. Twin A was in a more upright position and moved around every now and then, Twin B would curl up in ball and root around at the bottom of his/her sack. Casey got to hear both heartbeats for the first time and it was obvious he was just as moved as I was the first I heard them, too. The twins are both on track developmentally and growth wise. The best part of the visit came when the Ultrasound Tech suddenly changed the ultrasound screen to the new 4D view. It was unbelievable!!! You could see so much detail and it really made the Turner Twins come to life. We could see eyes, nose, arm buds, leg buds, backs, heads...everything. I think all we could do was gasp as we were able to peek in on our little miracles. They looked just like the little babies on my blog counter! We got lots of pics and even one of the 4D ones to take home, too. Casey and I will definitely be doing the full 4D ultrasound package later on - it was just tooooo fantastic.
After all the ultrasound fun, Dr. Everson met us back in an exam room and thats when it felt like the fun ended. She was very blunt (which was good) and said she had some serious concerns about my pregnancy, not for the babies but more for me. She said that my urine already had protein in it and my blood pressure was high, both are signs of pre-eclampsia (toxemia). She stated that my weight was also a concern (I explained it wasn't my plan to get pregnant while fat) and that with carrying twins I'd need to be closely monitored. Bottom line.. once you're told you're fat, pregnant with twins, have protein in your urine, high blood pressure and have a high risk of gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia- your day will pretty much suck from that point on.
Next week I'll be completing a 24 hour urine test, glucose test and additional blood work. Dr. E is sending me to specialist down in the medical center for another test in about a week or two and then possibly another specialist a few weeks later. We were finally given a due date of May 15th, however she said I'd probably only make it to mid or late April due to the concerns with my pregnancy. She said it would also be a good idea to start preparing for the babies now, as it was very possible I could be on bed rest at 20 weeks. This was when my stomach dropped - 20 WEEKS?!?!?! I struggled for 3 days on bed rest - I can't imagine 3 weeks, much less the entire second half of my pregnancy! I assured Dr. E I would do whatever was necessary to remain as healthy possible and avoid bed rest.
Since our visit I've made some diet changes and Casey and I are walking daily. I'm really working on my water intake and I've cutout sugar all together. Sugar has never been a big thing for me, so this has been easy. I love the creamy, cheesy and greasy stuff like pizza with ranch dressing, fettuccine alfredo and cheese of any kind - these foods have been eliminated, too. Today I tested my blood sugar, just out of curiosity, and was very happy to see it was 98 after eating. This news also helped Casey relax a bit more, too. I really didn't expect any of the news we received on Wednesday, but Casey and I have agreed to take it in stride and do whatever is necessary to not make things any worse. It just seemed like so much to absorb in our first OB visit and to only be 9 weeks along - I thought getting pregnant and the nausea and vomiting would be the hard part - not so. Good news is the babies are great and with the changes we've made hopefully I will be, too!
Sunday, October 5, 2008
5 Years and Counting
Saturday, October 4 we celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. I can't believe we've been married for that long. Time has a way of flying by, but at the same time we've done so much in that time, too.
We picked my grandfather's 78th birthday to be married on, so Saturday was also his birthday. My Aunt Karen had a big gathering at her house where we celebrated my grandfather's (Goer) 83rd birthday, my grandmother's (Mammers) 80th birthday, my grandparents' 61st Anniversary and my Uncle Bob's birthday, too. It was quite a celebration and everyone had a really great time. My favorite part of the whole day was all of the women in the family gathered around the pool, relaxing with their feet in the water. Even my Mammers joined in and we sat and talked for the longest time, just enjoying each other's company. So fun!!!
I stopped by the fire station to see Casey Saturday night after all the festivities were over. We haven't decided what we're going to do to mark our anniversary just yet. We have a couple of ideas in mind, just need to find the time to actually plan something. I kept thinking that if you had told me 5 years ago all that we've done since our wedding and all that we've accomplished, I'd have never believed it...then add in the expecting twins part and I probably would have called you a liar. But nope...its all true and what a ride its been. I love my Casey more than ever and can't wait to see what the next 5 years holds. I know its gonna be lots of fun!!!
We picked my grandfather's 78th birthday to be married on, so Saturday was also his birthday. My Aunt Karen had a big gathering at her house where we celebrated my grandfather's (Goer) 83rd birthday, my grandmother's (Mammers) 80th birthday, my grandparents' 61st Anniversary and my Uncle Bob's birthday, too. It was quite a celebration and everyone had a really great time. My favorite part of the whole day was all of the women in the family gathered around the pool, relaxing with their feet in the water. Even my Mammers joined in and we sat and talked for the longest time, just enjoying each other's company. So fun!!!
I stopped by the fire station to see Casey Saturday night after all the festivities were over. We haven't decided what we're going to do to mark our anniversary just yet. We have a couple of ideas in mind, just need to find the time to actually plan something. I kept thinking that if you had told me 5 years ago all that we've done since our wedding and all that we've accomplished, I'd have never believed it...then add in the expecting twins part and I probably would have called you a liar. But nope...its all true and what a ride its been. I love my Casey more than ever and can't wait to see what the next 5 years holds. I know its gonna be lots of fun!!!
Loud and Clear
Last Thursday I had my last twice a week appointment at Dr. Gill's office, and it was one of the best so far. Casey wasn't able to go due to his work schedule and I assumed everything would be as usual. I was so surprised when the nurse turned the sound on for the ultrasound machine. The entire exam room filled with a loud pumping sound...it was a heartbeat!!! Of course the waterworks immediately started and I wanted my Casey there with me. I should have known that by him not being able to come I would be in for a momentous appointment. The only other appointment he missed, I got see the heart beating for the first time. Let me tell you, actually hearing it is a whole different story.
Our first twin measured in right at 7 weeks, 6 days (the exact length of my pregnancy as of that day) and the heart rate was 166 beats per minute. The second twin measured in at 7 weeks, 4 days and was 160 bpm. The nurse explained that is was common for one baby to be smaller than the other and the difference of 2 days in size was nothing to be alarmed at. I was given the usual ultrasound pic of each and I also got printout of the heartbeats, too.
From now on I only have to go weekly to Dr. Gill's office and the nurse said the growth we'd be able to see at the next visit would be remarkable - can't wait!!! Wednesday is my first appointment with my new OB. I've also heard fantastic things about another OB in the same building that deals specializes in twins and multiplies, so I made an appointment with her later in the month. I really want to be comfortable and like whomever we choose so we want to check out both options. Casey will be attending both appointments this week and I can't wait for him to hear the heartbeats, too.
Our first twin measured in right at 7 weeks, 6 days (the exact length of my pregnancy as of that day) and the heart rate was 166 beats per minute. The second twin measured in at 7 weeks, 4 days and was 160 bpm. The nurse explained that is was common for one baby to be smaller than the other and the difference of 2 days in size was nothing to be alarmed at. I was given the usual ultrasound pic of each and I also got printout of the heartbeats, too.
From now on I only have to go weekly to Dr. Gill's office and the nurse said the growth we'd be able to see at the next visit would be remarkable - can't wait!!! Wednesday is my first appointment with my new OB. I've also heard fantastic things about another OB in the same building that deals specializes in twins and multiplies, so I made an appointment with her later in the month. I really want to be comfortable and like whomever we choose so we want to check out both options. Casey will be attending both appointments this week and I can't wait for him to hear the heartbeats, too.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Guac-Tarts
Our Tuesday appointment went very well. After tomorrow's appointment we'll only be going in once a week for an ultrasound and blood work. I know my veins will love the break. I look a heroin addict with track marks due to being stuck so much.
I am happy to say the morning sickness has subsided quite a bit. I'm able to get out of bed and actually function now, whereas a week or two ago I spent at least 45 minutes just trying to stop the room from spinning. I'm still working on eating every 1-1.5 hours to keep the nausea away. This afternoon I wasn't able to eat anything for about 4 hours, it ended up taking about 2 hours to feel better after I finally did eat.
The other day I invented my new favorite snack. We had some leftover guacamole in the fridge and no chips. I thought long and hard about what food I could use in place of a chip. Sure we had pretzels and even some crackers...but what pantry item really caught my fancy? Cherry pop-tarts - the ones that are iced and have sprinkles. Nothing like a warm, sweet, crunchy, toasted pop-tart dipped in cool creamy guacamole. I'm sure you're all gagging - but don't knock it until you try it. I'm telling you its absolute bliss!!! Something tells me the pop-tart company won't be too quick to create this new flavor for mass production, but I'm okay with cooking up my own "Guac-tarts" at home!
I am happy to say the morning sickness has subsided quite a bit. I'm able to get out of bed and actually function now, whereas a week or two ago I spent at least 45 minutes just trying to stop the room from spinning. I'm still working on eating every 1-1.5 hours to keep the nausea away. This afternoon I wasn't able to eat anything for about 4 hours, it ended up taking about 2 hours to feel better after I finally did eat.
The other day I invented my new favorite snack. We had some leftover guacamole in the fridge and no chips. I thought long and hard about what food I could use in place of a chip. Sure we had pretzels and even some crackers...but what pantry item really caught my fancy? Cherry pop-tarts - the ones that are iced and have sprinkles. Nothing like a warm, sweet, crunchy, toasted pop-tart dipped in cool creamy guacamole. I'm sure you're all gagging - but don't knock it until you try it. I'm telling you its absolute bliss!!! Something tells me the pop-tart company won't be too quick to create this new flavor for mass production, but I'm okay with cooking up my own "Guac-tarts" at home!
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