Half Time!

We hit the midpoint this past week - 20 weeks. Woo Hoo!!! The time seems to be flying by much more quickly than Casey or I expected. Everything seems that much closer knowing that 2009 starts this coming week, too.

• Babies weigh about 9 ounces and measure 5.5 to 6.5 inches (from crown to rump)
• Babies are the size of a small cantaloupe
• Myelin sheaths are developing on their nerves
• Epidermis and dermis are both forming

The babies movements have definitely increased over the past week. I can easily distinguish which one is moving and where they are located. Baby A seems to be the most active now, originally I rarely felt Baby A - now the movements last long enough that I can feel them from the outside with my hand, too.

Friday I felt pretty poor and could only describe the feeling as a hangover. After work I went to the station to see Casey and he took my blood pressure, it was pretty high. He sent me home and had me take my blood sugar which was also the highest its ever been. I took my blood sugar reading several more times that night and it eventually fell back down to a normal range. I didn't eat anything crazy over Christmas (not a big sweet eater) or feel stressed. Luckily, the rest I got Friday night seemed to help and my readings were all normal on Saturday. The blood sugar and blood pressure tests will be have to be a daily occurrence according to Dr. W. Hopefully it was just a weird day and won't happen again.

We had a great Christmas Day and of course the babies racked in lots of presents. Casey and I both got new cameras, but failed to take any pictures while visiting with family. Posting pictures will be my next goal...promise!!! Hope everyone had a great holiday and enjoyed the day as much as we did.

Gearing Up for Christmas

All has been quiet for the Turners. Our OB visit last week was great, everything is right on track and babies are doing well. We will have another ultrasound in mid to late January. Due to the crazy movements of the babies, the ultrasound tech wasn't able to get a couple of the measurements needed. The positive side to that is that we should definitely be able to find out the genders at thw next ultrasound appointment. Our OB appointment is January 16 and the ultrasound should follow within a week of that.

Since out last posting I had my first Braxton-Hicks contractions, they were quiet strange. Not uncomfortable or painful, just a very weird sensation when you realize that you have no control over whats happening in your stomach. Casey was of course concerned when I told Dr. W about them at our appointment. I didn't mention them to him beforehand since he would have hauled me straight to the ER (and it happened the night before my appointment so I wasn't worried). He now asks daily if I've had any more "John Deere" contractions. I've tired to correct him on the name and its a battle that's not worth fighting - so I'm sure my pregnancy is the first where "John Deere" contractions have occurred.

In an effort to start some new Christmas traditions before the babies arrive, we followed Lonnie and Jamie's lead and attempted to make Christmas cookies. This was a big deal last weekend, I even bought (and used) my first rolling pin and cookie cutters, along with every color icing and sprinkle you can think of. Both of us were pretty excited about our cookie activity....then after decorating about the 7th cookie, we decided we were over the excitement. Sure it was fun but lets just say I have whole new respect for those that are able to make "pretty" cookies. The few we completed were pretty sad, but tasted yummy. Since then Casey has been content eating the rest of our naked gingerbread men and snowmen - we'll try again next year.

I finally finished wrapping all our gifts this morning and am excited to see what Santa brings us tomorrow. I know we're both getting new cameras which will be put to good use with the blog. I think we have the only blog w/out pics...so those are definitely coming. I'll try to post some Christmas pics within the next few days. We hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and still can't believe this will be our last Christmas as a family of 2!!

P. S. Merry Christmas to my Mammers, Goer and Aunt Karen. I hope you're all having a great time on your trip to Arizona. Be safe and I can't wait to hear all about your adventures - love y'all!!!

18 Weeks

We ended up buying "the mothership". Its a white GMC Yukon XL and will hopefully be exactly what we need. There's been a big learning curve for me in driving since I've gone from my 2-door Accord to a large land yacht. I was able to navigate The Woodlands Mall yesterday without incident (other than being flipped off at least 4 times), and the crowds were beyond crazy. I was very pleased with all the cargo space and filled up the back with tons of bags and Christmas gifts.

Friday was our "big ultrasound". This was the one to mark and measure each baby's anatomy and growth/development. We were really excited and counting down to when we'd find out the genders. The ultrasound took almost 2 hours - a little over 45 minutes for each baby. In the end neither baby would give us a peek between their legs. The tech said that one could possibly be a girl, but that she was really just guessing. The other baby she couldn't even attempt to speculate on. We were disappointed but happy that all seemed to go well. We'll get the official report on everything this coming Thursday when I go to my monthly visit with Dr. W. The tech was so great and said we could come back any Monday, Tuesday or Friday and do a quick ultrasound to see if the babies would cooperate, without having an appointment. I'm sure we saved a LOT of money yesterday by me not knowing the sexes while out shopping. So we'll see what we kind find out in a week or two. And now for the 18 weeks update:

• Babies measure between 5 and 5.25 inches, and weigh about 5.5 ounces
• Bones are beginning to harden
• Inner ear bones are working and babies can be startled by loud noises
• Babies are now turning, wiggling, punching and kicking -I'm definitely able to feel all this!!
• Fingerprints are beginning to appear
• Babies are able to yawn and hiccup

More to come after Thursday's appointment!

The Search for a Mothership

Casey and I have been battling back and forth over what type of vehicle we'd need for our expanding family. I was hoping that a Tahoe would be enough room, however after looking at vehicles and baby items we realized we would need something larger. I decided that a mini-van would be the best solution and Casey was being stubborn and saying a Suburban would be the best choice.
I have spent many hours researching SUVs and minivans on the Internet, so I decided I needed to began seeing the cars I was interested in person. Occasionally I'd stop by a dealership on the way home to check out the selection and look at seating and cargo space. It wasn't long before a Suburban became the clear winner.
We had agreed prior to starting our search that we did not want to take on another car payment. My Accord was paid off and Casey's truck will be paid off in less than 18 months. Earlier this year (well before starting IVF) we enrolled in Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University and had decided that debt free is the only way to live. Since financing was not an option we were willing to do for our new car, an even bigger obstacle would be price.
Last Saturday I was convinced I had found our new "grocery go-getter". It was a great Suburban with reasonable miles and a price that we could work with. I told Casey about the truck and we went to look at it Monday evening, he agreed it was nice and wanted to proceed. Tuesday we got the bed rest-curve ball, so that put us out of commission until yesterday. I went to the dealership after speaking with our salesman on the phone Thursday, to take the Suburban to a family friend that's a mechanic to have everything checked out. Of course wouldn't you know that our salesman was off on Friday and it was so sold by another person....so typical!!!
I went to tell Casey the news in person at the fire station and he was just as disappointed as I was. While I was there we started looking on the Internet specifically for used Suburbans and after awhile we hit the jackpot. Another family friend is the head of sales for a dealership in a town about 40 miles away. I had put off calling John due to the distance and travel involved, but once we saw the most perfect Suburban on his website, I immediately called him to say we were interested and I was headed his way. This Suburban was even better looking in person and super clean and fully loaded. After the test drive and talking to John I was sold. I asked to keep the Suburban until Monday night so that I could let Casey see it and drive it a bit more. I think this one is going to be a keeper. Casey was very impressed and so were all the guys at the station - I'm thinking I could be a professional car shopper! Casey will be bringing home the truck tonight and I'll return it to the dealership Monday night after work. At this point, I think I may be saying good bye to my beloved Accord (Black Betty) and returning home with our new family ride....the Mothership!

Something's Going to Fall Out

This past Monday night I had a terrible time trying to sleep. I wasn't able to find a comfortable position, no matter how I adjusted my body or pillows. If I did manage to doze off, I was awake within 15 minutes with either a numb arm or leg. I was thankful when the alarm clock went off so that I could start my day and stop the tossing and turning. I felt good when I got up, other than being tired and went about my morning routine as usual. Once I began to get dressed I noticed some really low back pain and figured it was from all my movements during the night, so wasn't really concerned. When I left our bedroom to pick up the house before leaving, I suddenly realized I wasn't able to walk very well. I was having low abdominal pains and a very real sense that "something was going to fall out". I felt like I needed to keep my legs closed as tightly as possible when walking, and even then it felt like gravity had a crazy hold on my uterus.
Casey and I decided to call my doctor's office before hours due the intense pulling. My doctor's partner returned my call and said that she was concerned my cervix could be compromised and I needed to come to the office ASAP.
I headed to the office and was of course quite stressed and worried about the constant pulling and the struggle to walk. Dr. S checked my cervix and assured me that it was still thick and very tight. She then noticed my scar from my surgery in May and remembered that I had a presacral neurectomy. She said she was concerned with the pain and pulling since all of the nerves in my uterus had been removed, as this would not allow me to feel if anything changed for the worse. She decided I needed to be on bed rest for the remainder of Tuesday and all of Wednesday and Thursday. She said if I could return to work on Friday, if I promised to take it easy over the weekend. She also requested that I purchase a maternity belt due to my uterus growing so quickly and to ease the pushing of my uterus onto my cervix and wear it until at least Saturday. I was NOT excited to be put on bed rest, but I understood the reasoning behind it and why it was needed in this situation.
So I survived the 3 days of prescribed bed rest and it was easier to do this time knowing I had 2 little ones counting on me (and my Casey). The last time I had to do 3 days of bed rest was after the embryo transfer with Dr. Gill. At that point we weren't certain in vitro would even work and I felt I could lay for 3 days and not have a successful implantation. This time I was able to relax and know that I had made it through 3 days before and could do it again. The maternity belt really helped and made me quite comfortable at work on Friday, too. It really helps to have it on when I'm mulling around the house or running errands and isn't able to be seen under normal clothing.
Everything has been going well since last week and our next big event is on Friday. We have our big ultrasound that afternoon and can't wait to learn the sexes of our two sweet peas!!!