The Inevitable Has Come

I am officially on bed rest.

Somehow I knew the day would come, I just didn't think it would be this soon.

Considering that I am a whopping 5'4" (well, I round up - I'm 5'3.5"),

I have 2 babies growing inside of me,

and I haven't been allowed to do any strenuous exercise,

this probably shouldn't be a surprise.

However, I have felt great throughout the pregnancy and was genuinely beginning to think that I was going to beat the odds of moms of twins ending up on bed rest.  

It was hard at first to hear that I had to be on bed rest, but it has become easier and easier to accept as I realize that the ultimate goal is to have 2 healthy babies.  If taking it easy will help me reach that goal, bring it on!

The great news is, the babies are doing SO well!  At my last Dr's appointment I got an ultrasound to check their growth and our little babies are growing like crazy.

The ultrasound tech kept saying, "Wow, you've got some butterballs in there!"

Basically, our babies are little chunks and are both measuring

2 weeks bigger than how far along I am.

Baby Boy was about 3 lbs. 4 oz.

Baby Girl was about 3 lbs. 5 oz.

This is fantastic news because their growth patterns have been consistent, it means they are both getting the nutrients they need, and if I deliver early they will have an advantage because of their size.

Before I tell the story of how we found out that I need to be on bed rest, here are pictures from the last 2 weeks.

Week 28

  I was pretty surprised to see just how big I am!

Week 29

 Here's the story of how we learned I need to be on bed rest:

During the same growth ultrasound I was just talking about the tech noticed that my cervix didn't look normal, so after talking with the specialist we found that my cervix is doing something called "funneling."  This basically means that it is beginning to open from the inside. 

The Dr. sent us to the hospital to get further monitoring and we learned that I have been having fairly frequent contractions and that I am 40% effaced and just barely dilated (less than 1cm).  I hadn't felt any of the contractions, which is good, but we needed to calm them down.  So I had some medicine to help my uterus relax and after 8ish hours of monitoring we left the hospital with orders to be on bed rest until my next Dr's appointment.

My next appointment was scheduled for 4 days later and the good news is that nothing has changed!  I haven't dilated any more and my contractions have calmed down.

In order to keep things steady and prevent more pre-term labor I have been put on bed rest indefinitely.  We'll just take it week by week to keep these babies cookin'!

Luckily I can still get up to grab a snack, shower, go to the bathroom, and I can drive short distances.  Just no shopping, going on walks, preparing meals, and things that

require me to be on my feet for a while.  

This also means no more nannying.

This is really sad because the family I nanny for is incredible.  They have truly been such a blessing in our lives.  I felt so bad leaving them so suddenly, but they were completely understanding and want 2 healthy babies they can snuggle too.

So, to entertain myself I have taken up a new hobby of knitting - which I am loving!  

I'm working on a baby blanket :)

I'm also reading, working on puzzles, watching movies and getting things in order for when the babies are here!

Martin has been the best support system I could ask for.  He makes sure I'm comfy, he cleans, he cooks, he runs to the store, he does puzzles with me, he gets books at the library for me, he asks the people he works with for ideas to entertain me, and most of all - he loves me :) 

I'm very blessed to have him and so are these little babies.