Cute Baby Clothes

Sweaters and hats knitted by Gina

We've been acquiring baby things here and there from very generous friends and friends of friends and family members who have recently had babies.  So this past weekend, just to get a better sense of what and how much we have and what and how much we need, Katy started inventorying.  Man - how small and cute these baby clothes are.  On the day that we went for our first ultrasound (to find out the sex and, it turned out, that Katy had two in there), Gina gave me a purple sweater that she had knitted for our child.  Today she gave us the second - green sweater with the hats that you see in the photo to the right.  Incredibly cute, very generous. 

The girls trying on their sweaters and hats

And - it's amazing to think about how many little outfits we will be stuffing little baby arms and legs into.

Entering Phase 3: The Belly's in Charge

We're now entering the third trimester and the girls are each about the size of a head of cauliflower (so they say). My belly's starting to spread wider, even as it continues to poke out more and more. I've been gaining a little under 2 lbs. a week for the last month and I know exactly where it's all going. I'm actually a little intimidated when I catch a glimpse of the belly in the mirror and have to remind myself that it's my belly and that if I move slowly and speak in calm tones it won't jump out and attack me. I used to feel like I had some control over the situation, but now it's seeming more and more like the belly controls me. I do what it wants, when it wants it, whether that's propping it up on a pillow, holding it up as I walk (very slowly) to the car, feeding it meaty things, or leaving work early to go lie down if it's in a bad mood, etc.

Last Thursday it was very cranky. It started contracting in the morning and just wouldn't stop. They weren't painful or rhythmic contractions, but I couldn't seem to get them to go away all day, even with lying down and drinking tons of water. It got to the point where I couldn't tell any more what was going on down there because the sensations (babies kicking, ab muscles stretching, contractions, full stomach) all ran together. Not to mention that all the twins books emphasize the risk of pre-term labor so I was super sensitive to anything out of the ordinary. Unfortunately, I couldn't think of anyone nearby who could give me a quick pelvic exam, so it was off to the hospital for some late-night evaluation.

To make a long story short, everything was fine. The girls were active and responsive during the non-stress test (NST), the contractions hadn't affected my cervix in any way, and the fetal fibronectin (FFN) test came back negative. The nurse practitioner who examined me said it's possible that I'll just have an active uterus for the rest of my pregnancy with more Braxton-Hicks contractions than others, which isn't out of the ordinary for moms of multiples. Our OB wasn't concerned about it when we saw her yesterday for our regular appointment, which was also reassuring. She also gave me my first shot of RhoGAM (I'm Rh negative, Mike's Rh positive), which was less reassuring and more, how they say, "painful."

Surprise Evening Visit to the Hospital

It's a little after 1am on Friday Feb 3rd and we just got back from the hospital.  For the last week, Katy has been having a few contractions each day, which apparently is normal and, we recently learned, has a name "Braxton Hicks" contractions- her body starting to work those muscles.   Today, all day, she had more irregular and sustained contractions - that sounded different than what we had read about Braxton Hicks contractions being.  Finally, this evening, we called the on-call doctor and she told us that the only way that they could know for sure is if we went in to see if her cervix was dilated at all.  So at 10pm tonight, we headed up there and after a number of tests - everything is alright.  The girls are doing great - moving around a lot, which is great.  The nurse practitioner told Katy that that may just be the baseline for her pregnancy. Our first little scare.  But we're glad we went up there to get it checked out and now know.  I'm sure Katy will write a little more about it later.

Week 26

Getting more real by the minute... Crib #1

It was a full-on baby-prep weekend.  Friday afternoon, we went to check out a day-care three blocks away at a Lutheran Church.  It was a friendly atmosphere with lots of room to play.  We're at the top of the waiting list and we've been told that usually the first 7 or 8 babies get in off the waiting list.  

Then, on Saturday, we took my desk out of the office and put together crib #1, which we procured from friends.   Used one allen wrench to put this puppy together.   Am feeling like I may be putting together many more things with allen wrenches in the coming months.. and years.  

On Sunday, we kept working on the babies' room - by moving Katy's desk into the front guest room, which will serve as her office/our second guest room.   And further turning the office into the babies room.  We got a second rocking chair, which Flash has already put dibs on.  Katy also began inventorying  the boxes of clothes that we've  gotten passed along from friends to figure out what exactly we have and to begin to make a list of what we still need. 

In the News

 Katy's starting to feel nauseous again.  We're hoping it's just passing (but we're not holding our breath).


Went up to the Sundance Film Festival today for a movie about food insecurity and Katy and the girls joined the Utahns Against Hunger current staff and future staff (2 AmeriCorps VISTAs who begin with us in a few weeks) in Park City for the show.  And yes, if you're wondering, it was work for me.  Hard work. 

Wanted to share a few twin related articles that have come our way recently:
Twin Births in the U.S., Like Never Before - NYTimes
A Thing or Two About Twins - National Geographic

Meat? Why Yes, I'd Love Some.

It's near end of the second trimester and Katy's body is starting to ache and hurt and itch more and more.   We are very thankful that she's not feeling sick all the time.  But these new pains are daunting because as we think about how things will become more challenging in the coming months. That being said, Katy still is congested.  The same congestion that has been with her since the beginning of her pregnancy.  Next time you see her, don't ask her if she's sick.   (She might be but she's tired of answering that question.)

Following the lead of our dear friends from Austin - Leah and Chris - Katy is keeping track of all the protein she eats, as well as her calcium and iron.  She's eating more meat than she can shake a stick at and eating protein fruit shakes that we're making at home and whole grain this and that.  

Katy eating pork butt

Though regular meat eaters always seem to take particular glee that a vegetarian has given it up, Katy while enjoying the meat in her diet, isn't enamored with it and is thinking that she'll leave it behind again once she is back on her feet again after giving birth.  Meanwhile, she has become quite adept at making a mean beef and barley stew and I am close to earning my cub scout bacon cooking badge.