Of course, that's just my opinion, I could be wrong
Monday, December 22, 2008
End of an era
Well, kids here we go. My doctor wants me to come in at 1AM so we'll be leaving the house in about an hour. So apologies for the lack of Hanukkah day 2 update. It'll come eventually.
I went to see Dr. S the GD/perinatologist today. We had another conversation about induction (this time G was there) and some of my concerns. He agreed that there's no reason to anticipate a C-section but obviously nothing is 100%. I get that part. If he didn't think that I was good to go, he wouldn't be on board with moving ahead either. He also said quite frankly, that he didn't think delivering, much less twins, during a holiday weekend was the greatest of ideas. Even though I'm at one of the top, biggest medical centers in the country, people are distracted, do or don't want to be working, etc. He said that I've passed every criteria as far as he's concerned so he feels more than comfortable with me inducing and moving ahead. Plus Dr. C wouldn't be there after the 24th so another factor to think about. He did ultrasound measurements and both Boo-Boo's are still going great. He estimates that both are over 7 pounds. Holy shit! No wonder I've gained 6-7 pounds in the last week and can barely move. He did the amnio/lung test and then the heart monitor and then we waited around all day to hear from Dr. C.
When G and I were driving home, obviously we were discussing the options. As much as I don't want to induce, clearly, these babies are good and strong. I was about 20 minutes away from a C-section withC and she was 7lb. 15oz. If his weight numbers are correct, and I waited a few more days, then we would be getting closer to 8 pounds and that's just asking for a c-section. Given the choice, I'd rather get them out than be cut open, if at all possible. Oh, and Dr. S did say that Baby A seems to have dropped into the first position to come out. That was good because they were essentially ear to ear for 2 weeks and we didn't know who would win the arm wrestle. With one further down, that's certainly putting more pressure on my cervix to keep moving along.
So waited around all day for Dr. C. She didn't call so I paged her at 6PM. No, her receptionist, who I know well, didn't call but she told me that the lungs were quite mature and we were good to go. So we're going in at 1AM and they'll start me on a low dose of pitocin. I'll try to find out where I am on the Bishop scale and see if they can start me on a prostagladin gel to slowly open my cervix instead of the pitocin. I expect to see her around 7-8A. And she thinks we'll deliver between 10A-noon, 2PM the latest.
I'm nervous and excited to finally meet and see the long anticipated Boo-Boo's. Big surprise for everyone. I'm also a little melancholy because it's the last night of just being a family of 3. I think C is excited but a little bit of me is sad. It's no longer just the three of us. We won't be able to just go and do stuff for a little while. C will no longer be queen of the house and she'll have to share us with two other people. That's a little sad. She wanted to have one big family of 3 group hug before she went to sleep tonight. I know it's all good and a family of 5 is very exciting but it's really the end of era in a lot of ways.
So, my dear friends, who've been with me for this long journey, I'm off. I will post as soon as I can get computer access. Photos and stories will be posted as soon as possible.
I figure I should keep up with the Hanukkah happenings while I can. I'm sure at some point I will disappear.
Night 1 was quiet, just me and C since G was working. It was easy since last night we braved it and went to The Grove so C could pick out her very first American Girl doll. Several months ago, when we found out about the Boo-Boo's, we thought that an American Girl doll would be a good, big pressie for Hanukkah for the new big sister. We didn't know when we would go and since G had the day off yesterday, we thought we'd brave it even though it's the last shopping weekend before Christmas. Anyway, we went to The Grove and went to the American Girl store. Wow, what a place. I'd been there once before but didn't spend too much time in there. It's quite overwhelming but C did really well. After a little while and several "I can't decides", she narrowed in on the Emily doll.
So we got that for her and one outfit. The Grove was crowded but it was ok. At 7PM they had "real snow" falling which was fun. Okay, it was soap bubbles but it was very cute. C loved it and it certainly looked real as it was coming down.
Nice hat from Johnny Rockets.
So for night 1, C got her American Girl doll. She did ask me several times today if we could light the candles early but overall, she handled the anticipation and excitement well. We lit the candles on 5 hanukiahs (hanukiot?)
Here's Emily in outfit #1 And Emily in outfit #2 And she also opened a pressie from Grandpa A and M. It was the DVD of 101 Dalmatians. Always a good movie choice.
We'll see what tomorrow brings. We don't have 8 nights worth of pressies I can tell you that. Between the doll and another big ticket item, that's pretty much it plus oh yeah, the Boo-Boo's are a-coming. I do have two other small things and that's just going to have to be good enough for Hanukkah this year. She'll be fine. It'll just be nice to light the candles together as a family tomorrow, even if it means we then take off for the hospital.
Yes, the Boo-Boo's are coming any minute now but our family has expanded by a few new, truly fantastic people. Let's see if I can make a long story less long.
G has a a brother G and a half brother S. They all have the same Dad. Obviously, G and G speak all the time. S is 10 years younger than my G and because of that age difference and just being in different places in life, hadn't spoken in over 20 years. It wasn't anything specific between them other than just losing touch when one is still in high school and one is in their late 20's and working. About 18 months ago, S tracked down BIL-G who in turn passed along everyone's emails, etc. We exchanged holiday cards, and the guys a few emails. Dissolve to this past September, when G and S got together for lunch. They had a nice time catching up so we took it to the next step and scheduled a dinner for the adults to get together and meet.
So, the beginning of November, us 4 adults met at The Melting Pot in Pasadena for a yummy dinner. And it was fantastic. Personally, I felt an instant connection with S & his wonderful wife C. We laughed A LOT and was simply great. It was definitely more like old friends getting together than meeting new people. No awkwardness or weird moments or anything. I can’t quite describe it but it was really a terrific night with great food and even better company. They have an almost 7 year old daughter in 1st grade and an almost 2 year old boy. It’s exciting to know that C has two more 1st cousins in her life.
The next morning we explained to Carly she’s got new cousins and she was excited to meet them. Apparently, S & C explained the same to L who was also very excited to know she’s got a girl cousin and they’re just one grade apart. So we scheduled a family get together for a few weeks later.
On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we went to their house for the kids to meet each other and have dinner. I guess the fact that after about 2 minutes we never basically didn’t see the girls again was a good thing. They were off playing and had a great time. They got along wonderfully and clearly had plenty to talk about, whatever 5 and 6 year olds talk about. 2 year old S mostly hung out with us and really liked hanging out with his Uncle G. I would’ve been more entertaining and gotten on the floor with him but with my belly, that wasn’t going to happen that night. Soon though. All I know is the next morning, My C woke up saying “Can L come over for a playdate today?” so meeting the new cousins was a success. I’m sure we’ll all get together over winter break so they can all meet the Boo-Boo’s once they arrive and I'm looking forward to it.
I’m very excited to say I have another BIL and SIL, niece and nephew. They’re wonderful and fun and I know C is really excited to have two more cousins. This is the beginning of a beautiful relationship and I’m really happy about it.
Look at these happy girls! S with his Uncle G
S and his Mommy C
We'll have to work on pics with me and S for next time.
Well kids, we're here. We're officially 37 weeks. That means that the Boo-Boo's are full terms. I went to see Dr. C today. I had gone on Tuesday and walked away quite down from the possibility of inducing. I had another conversation with her today and told her that I was first of all quite upset at the concept of induction but also I needed to make it clear that I did NOT want a c-section. I understand that if I'm pushing for X number of hours or whatever and that becomes necessary (we were close when I delivered C) so be it. But I wanted assurance that IF I'm going to induce that I needed to know that all signs were going to point towards a successful induction. I'm not interested in inducing, having it not work and because of the holidays, we'll just do a c-section. I'll walk out of the hospital before I do that for someone else's convenience.
It turns out my doctor is going to be out of town the 24th thru the 28th which is perhaps why she's pushing for induction. And after all that I've been through with this pregnancy it would be disappointing for her not to deliver the Boo-Boo's, but I'm doing this based on her schedule. If I have to have Dr. B deliver than so be it. We go to the peri on Monday who will do another weight assessment and an internal exam, then we'll call Dr. C and all decide together if I'm close enough to then do the test to determine if the lungs are mature enough to induce. If so, then we'll probably go in on Monday night (hey, helps with traffic), induce and have them Tuesday "brunch" as Dr. C says. We'll see on Monday where we're at. Today, I was 1-2 cm dilated, 80% effaced but -2 which means they're still pretty high up there. Probably because both heads are right next to each other. Neither one has dropped to then put added pressure on my cervix to keep things moving. As long as I get through the weekend, when G is done with work, all will be fine. Stay tuned on this one...
It's been a busy week, as usual. While I was able to lay pretty low this week, I still had things to do. I did what felt like a million holiday cards. I swear, I think we sent out over 150 cards. Why? Still not sure. We need to scale that back a little bit. It's nice to connect with people and perhaps we'll send out just as many to show off the almost 1 year old babies, but still, it's a little out of control. I made my own Hanukkah cards again this year. Three years in a row, I think. I'm happy with them this year and then the requisite photo card from Costco. I'll scan tomorrow and post.
And it's been a busy week for C at school. She's now on winter break but yesterday was the kindergarten Hanukkah celebration at school followed by a free for all party at one of the kid's houses. My kid, who never sleeps as many of you know, was lights out before 8PM yesterday. She was exhausted. And it worked in my favor because I had a lot to do to get the teacher gifts all ready. From a wonderful, creative new blog that someone passed along, called Little Birdie Secrets, I made homemade hot chocolate with peppermint marshmallows for the teachers. They came out cute if I say so myself.
And yes, I made cup of the hot chocolate and it's yummy and the marshmallows are quite tasty too. And of course, I have to do fancy gift bags (thanks Janna for the endless inspiration from UI) and cards, etc. etc. And I made a magnetic "notes" board for C's teacher. Thankfully these things don't take too long but I did only start that project at 10PM last night. It all got done and everyone seemed appreciative. I only can motivate to make the effort when I know someone "gets" the effort that I put in. I've learned that lesson.
Now that the cards and pressies are off the checklist, C and I finally decorated for Hanukkah. We'll be celebrating the first night just us girls it looks like. I have to pull out the couple of pressies I have and wrap them up for her. It's gonna be a low key Hanukkah this year with the Boo-Boo's impending arrival. Now, the only thing that really needs to happen is I need to start dealing with the school yearbook. Oy, haven't dealt with that at all but I'll try to start this weekend and make a small dent in what I already have.
And for those DGA members out there who might be reading this (anyone? anyone?), vote for G for the "American Idol" finale. Shameless plug.
Yesterday was our 7 year anniversary. G was working all day so we really didn't get to spend too much time together but we were able to go out to dinner the weekend before to celebrate. It was a great dinner at Fins Creekside. I'm glad we went out already because I was feeling pretty crappy yesterday so I wouldn't have been in the mood to celebrate. G sent me these beautiful flowers which totally made my day. Love you G SO much, you have no idea.
Just sharing a couple of other pics. These are from M's Bat Mitzvah a few weeks ago. The always amazing Araxi was the photographer for the event and she posted these pics on her blog. Thus, I lifted them and posting them here. These are two great photos with C and M's sister C. Simply gorgeous and Araxi totally captured the moments of the event.
Update on the Boo-Boo's. We're in week 36 out of 37, which is considered full term for twins. They're still doing very well, plenty of fluid around them, very active which I'm definitely feeling. I'll go back on Friday to see how I'm progressing. Things are definitely "softening" and moving forward. On Monday, I'll go back to the perinatologist who will do another check on the Boo-Boo's and see if their lungs are developed. They may induce next week if all signs point to good lung development. I don't really want to be induced so there are still some discussions to be had but we're definitely in the home stretch.
I was feeling really crampy yesterday. I had made 3 quick stops and was definitely feeling it. Today was definitely better. My legs though are so swollen, they pretty much hurt to the touch. They feel bruised. I'm definitely ready for that to start going away. Sleeping is a challenge as well as I have to literally sit up to roll over. But only about a week to go and the reward it totally worth the discomfort for a few more days. We'll see where we are after Friday.
Well, we're definitely in the home stretch. Less than two weeks to go. We still have to have the Boo-Boo's stay in until after the 21st come hell or high water. So I'm going with the 22nd, 2-two's, two babies, 2nd night of Hanukkah. So cross your two fingers that the karma of two is worthy.
Went to see the GD doctor today. My diabetes numbers are really good so I'm pretty much out of the woods there. I won't go off and drink milkshakes for the next few weeks but at least I won't have to go on any medication as long as I keep watching my diet and don't do anything stupid. The Boo-Boo's are doing great in there too. Plenty of fluid around them, both head down (they've been head down for a good 6-7 weeks now) and doing great. Baby A is about 6lbs. 4 oz. Baby B is around 6lbs. So they're both well over 6 pounds which is wonderful in terms of delivery and the bigger the better. Heck, C was 7lb. 15 oz so anything smaller than that will be just fine. But it also means that I'm carrying around more than 12 pounds of baby so it's no wonder I'm tired, feel the weight and pressure down below. I still can't get over the ginormity of my feet, ankles and legs. They're huge and uncomfortable. I can barely get any shoes on at this point. Doesn't really hurt, just uncomfortable. I guess it's distracting and I'm not noticing if my back hurts. Anyway, Dr. S. said I'm pretty much done with him. Since I'm closing in on 36 weeks and they probably won't let me go much past 38 weeks, there's no point in scheduling an appointment in 3 weeks at 39 weeks unless my OB says so. I go see her on Friday.
So C and I had a bit of a photo shoot tonight. It's been a few weeks since I've taken official belly pictures and since we're in the home stretch, I needed to document the basketball belly. So here are some photos. Obviously, the ones that are just me, C took.
Nice profile...
35 1/2 week belly... Yes, that measures 47" around. Big sister C and the Boo-Boo's And no, I cannot button the top completely.
We had our flute choir concert tonight. It actually went well. Yes, I sound surprised because some concerts are rockier than others. This one was nice. We had some nice, new holiday music that was actually pretty. Nice arrangements which is important, especially when I'm playing bass. I go out of my mind when the bass flute part is a bunch of whole notes. At least all the music I played tonight (3 C flute and 4 bass parts) all had something to do so I wasn't bored. We had one piece that I played a lot of high notes with the piccolos (do you think I'll ever play my piccolo again for real?) and it finally got to me with the breathing. It's been a challenge but leave it to the concert for me to actually, finally get winded. Annoying since it was a nice piece. I felt like I had to breathe after each measure, but it was just that piece.
And the flute choir was wonderful in giving us a gift for the Boo-Boo's. I will admit we haven't opened it yet. Once we got home, my ankles and legs were so uncomfortably swollen, that I just came upstairs to put my feet up. For those that are wondering or concerned, up until the actual concert, I sat on a stool for all rehearsals. Only for the actual concert did I stand.
Okay, official photo to come tomorrow but I have officially gone to the dark side. I own a minivan. I've always said "I will never own a mini-van". In fact, I think it was tattoed on my forehead. But with two babies coming, my Lexus SUV just won't hold 3 car seats in one row. So I've been broken down and we got a Honda Odyssey. It's dark gray with leather interier. It's got the automatic doors and the 2009 rear has an automatic button. It's got 76 miles on it. I need to clear out my Lexus and I don't have time to do that until the weekend so two more days officially in that car and then we'll make the switch. I did take the time to program my XM channels on the radio. Priorities after all. It's really nice though so if I have to drive a mini-van, I'm excited. Hey, I guess I can keep my "I will never own a minivan" mantra. We're leasing!
Nothing like a last minute shameless plug. If you're interested and/or available to go, call me and let me know if you have any questions. I can't guarantee being on the computer during the day tomorrow. But it will be a nice concert and we'll bribe you with refreshments afterwards.
Got plenty to blog about but finally have photos and things to back it up. So we'll do one at a time. Really throw off those of you who attempt to follow my ever growing belly and life and then wonder where I drop off to for 10 days at a time.
Okay, let's talk about a baby shower. A few of my fabulous girlfriends and my sister threw me a baby shower last week. These are all wonderful women who I've met since C came into the world (well, except for my seester). A lot changes when you have a kid and I'm lucky that I am still close with lots of the people were who at the first one, which is why I didn't want to obligate anyone to the second one. Okay, grandmothers, sister and C's Godmothers being the exception. It doesn't occur to me, except in instances like this, that I have friends from so many different places and interests in my life. From school to Gymboree with our girls were about 1 years old to scrapbooking to pre-school. And that's where my life has changed so much, for the better, in the past 5+ years. So there were about 16 of us at the yummy restaurant P6 in Westlake Village for a fabulous lunch. One of my uber-creative friends Mollie made up the menu cards. How adorable are these?
My sister, as usual was the official photographer and took a zillion pictures including a shot of every entree.
She's got a thing for photographing food but it's all so pretty it's not that crazy. I won't bore you with pics of all the dishes but here were the yummy desserts.
And I got spoiled with some wonderful pressies. Yes, I need to get off the computer and make the thank you notes (that's tonight's project). But the Boo-Boo's are pretty well stocked at this point thanks to all these wonderful, fabulous, generous women in my life. I love you all so dearly and my life would not be as blessed without each and every one of you in my life. You are all the true definition of friend to me and thank you for celebrating with me. I missed you C and A.
As for the Boo-Boo's, holy shit, we've got about 3 weeks to go. We're down to the wire. Got the car seats (thanks to R), strollers (thanks R & J), and the rest of the stuff is pretty much piled up in the babies room. I need to start doing things like make the cribs, get my bag for the hospital ready, pull out the clothes that I have, wash them and pack an outfit for the hospital, etc. I'm pretty much free tomorrow and Thursday after drop off so I'm hoping to get that all done. I've done enough procrastinating. In spite of the swollen ankles, something's got to get accomplished.
The Boo-Boo's themselves are doing great. Had a doctor's appointment last Wednesday before Turkey day and yesterday. Did the whole heart monitor thing and they both got an A+ from Dr. C. They're still very active and kicking away. They're both head down so the vaginal delivery thing is looking very good. Both heads are pretty much right next to each other which is why I'm probably feeling so much pressure down there. Thankfully, even with the swollen ankles, my blood pressure is still normal. I can barely move by the end of the day but if they say it's good, who am I to argue? Sleeping is a little tougher. I'm up every 90 minutes or so to roll over which is a challenge. But that's about right as Mother Nature starts to prep for the complete lack of sleep that comes with newborns.
Went to see my Lactation Consultant today. (sorry if this is TMI but too bad. It's real life). I breastfed C for almost 15 months and I'll certainly do my best with these two. But had to go see the LC to say "HOW do you do it with two?". So got a quick refresher today. I'm sure she'll be hearing from me after their arrival but at least I've got some strategies to start. She also "talked" to the Boo-Boo's (think dog whisperer) and she says they're doing great in there. And then before we left, she said she knows what their sexes are. My friend L was with us (besides being a great friend, she's a Lamaze instructor and wanted to listen to information on breastfeeding twins for future students) and she really wants to know. G figured she should write it down in a sealed envelope and we'll see if she's right. I guess when I call her after they arrive, I'll have to see what she thought and we'll see if that was correct.
Okay, that's it for the report for today. Coming up, shameless plug for the flute concert on Thursday, some family update stuff and showing off a photo shoot. Stay tuned...
I'm a mom to 3 beautiful girls. I work in TV Production when I have to, I prefer to stay at home. In my spare time, I scrapbook, play the flute, am a crazy LA Kings fan, and I play on the computer when I should really be sleeping.
