34 Weeks

We had a little scare this week.  Marcus went out of town on Tuesday for a few days.  He is working with some SAGE students exploring canyons and all kinds of other fun stuff.   We debated on whether or not he should go.  We decided that since I am only 34 weeks it's unlikely I would go into labor.  So Wednesday (yesterday) I woke up and felt different.  I was having some cramping and aching.  It was on and off pretty much all day.  Crazy, paranoid me thought it was early signs of preterm labor.   Luckly I had an appointment already scheduled this morning at 9:00 am.  Dr. S was not too concerned when I told him my symptoms.  He said that many woman have the same pains late in their pregnancy.  He went ahead and checked my cervix to make sure it was still closed, and it was.  So...THANKFULLY Addison and Avery are still cooking for the time being. : )  I was also able to get a sono today.  Addison and Avery both look great!  We figured out why I was cramping yesterday.  Avery and Addison both decided they wanted to BOTH be head down.  Everyone knows that the Hodges do not have small heads SOOOO my uterus had to make a lot of room for their big heads and that means A LOT of stretching! : )  Both girls weigh 4 lbs 13 ozs. and they both have a lot of hair.  Randy, our sono guy, told me to bring lots of bows to the hospital!  : )

Marcus and I cannot wait to meet the girls BUT, at the same time,  we want them to stay in as long as they can (36 weeks hopefully) so they don't have to spend much time in the NICU.  The worst would be having to leave the girls in the hospital, or to leave even just one of the girls in the hospital.  That would break our hearts.

No News Is Good News

I am eagerly awaiting my doctor to say, "Let's schedule your c-section for..." but no such luck.

The girls are doing fabulous. The last sono I had was on June 28th. As soon as we found Miss Avery's face she turned away from us...she is going to be our little stinker. : ) She was always smaller from the beginning BUT now she weighs more than Addison! Avery weighed 4 lbs 2 ozs and Addison weighed only 4 lbs. Avery still was breech and Addison was transverse (perpendicular to Avery). Randy, the sono guy, predicted that I would have the girls at 36 weeks. We will see!!

My blood pressure has been really good but I haven't been feeling that great. I told Dr. S about all my horrible pains and how uncomfortable I am...he didn't seem to feel very sorry for me! ; ) I guess he hears it ALL DAY LONG! After I complained to him for ten minutes, I wasn't about to ask him , "So, when can I have these babies?" Maybe next week I will ask him! : )

I am 33 weeks, so I am hoping they will come in two to three weeks. I don't want them coming next week because Marcus will be out of town from Tuesday to Friday. I would hate for him to miss the birth of our first and second child. Wouldn't that be sad?!

Please continue to pray for our sweet girls! My doctor is really amazed with how well the pregnancy is going so the prayers are definitely working!

Here is my 33 week belly pic compared to my 31 week belly pic:



31 weeks



33 weeks

Almost Here!!

I met with Dr. S today.  He checked the girls' heartbeats and measured my stomach.  Now instead of meeting with him every two weeks, I will meet with him every week.  I asked him when most first time moms with twins usually deliver.  He said about 34 to 35 weeks is average.  SOOOO....that means the girls might be here in three to four weeks (I am 31 weeks)!!!  He also said that, at this point and at their weight, if I do go into labor the girls would be fine....which is always good to hear!  Of course we want them to stay in as long as possible.  They would be fine BUT would have to stay in the NICU for awhile...and we don't want that. 

31 week picture compared to 28 week picture...

30 Week 3D Sono

On Friday, we had our much anticipated 30 week 3D Sono.  It turned out to be kind of a flop!  Avery was turned toward my back so we couldn't get any pictures of her.  Addison was squished against the placenta so all the pictures we got of her turned out horrible!  It made her look like she had a HUMONGOUS nose and lips!  I will not be posting those pics. ; )  It was nice to see them moving around and we always love to hear their heartbeats...that's why it was not a COMPLETE flop.  We did see Addison opening and closing her eyes, which was neat.  She also kept one of her hands in her mouth the whole time which was super cute! 

I am almost 31 weeks.  I have a feeling that Avery and Addison will be here in about four to five weeks!!!!  Most of my friends with twins told me that they had their sweeties at 35 weeks.  That means they will probably coming mid July!!!  Isn't that CRAZY!! We are so excited!  We have done a lot to prepare for our sweet girls but still have A LOT to do. 

I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow...I'll let you know what happens! : )

Steroid Shot...OUCH!

Every two weeks I have an appointment with my doctor.  He listens for the babies' heartbeats and measures my belly....and I ask questions.  At my appointment on Tuesday, Dr. Sudela (the best doctor ever), told me that my uterus is the size of a full term singleton pregnancy.  He explained that my uterus does not know I have two babies so it is very likely I will go into preterm labor.  He thought it would be best to give me two shots of steroids.  It helps develop the babies lungs.  I received one shot on Tuesday and had to go back and get another shot on Wednesday....and they HURT! The pain is well worth it as long as Avery and Addison are healthy!  Please pray that I do not go into labor too early.  As much as I want the girls to be here, I want them to come into the world healthy and strong.  I DO NOT want them to struggle at all.   Please, please continue praying for them!

We have another 3D Sono on June 17th.  I will be 30 weeks at that point.  We can't wait to show everyone the pictures of Miss Avery and Addison!  I just hope both Avery and Addison will cooperate!

I don't think my belly has grown that much since my 25 week picture.  Here is a side-by-side view of my 25 week picture and my 28 week picture...

28 Week Sono!

       God continues to watch over our sweet babies.  Avery and Addison look perfect!  Addison already has hair and Avery has a cute face with chubby cheeks.  Addison continues to be the bigger baby.  She weighs 2 lbs 10 ozs and Avery weighs 2 lbs 9 ozs.  Addison is still head down and my active little Avery is now sideways (perpendicular to Addison).  Both Addison and Avery were head down the last sonogram we had. 
         I found a plaque for the babies room that made me cry.  It explains exactly how I feel.  It says:
                           Before you were conceived,
                                    I wanted you
                               Before you were born,
                                     I loved you
                            Before you were here an hour,
                                I would die for you
                            This is the miracle of love
Marcus and I are absolutely, 100% totally in love with these little girls and we haven't even met them yet!  We are enjoying our time alone now (enjoying long naps, relaxing, going out to eat, etc.) but looking forward to the girls' arrival.  Thank you for all your prayers and please continue to pray for our sweet baby girls.
                                Addison's sweet profile picture! 

               Avery's picture is REALLY hard to see.  The curved white
          line is a profile of her face and her legs are pulled up by her face.

Update!

     It has been a few weeks since I have last posted any news so I wanted to update everyone on what has been going on.  I am almost 28 weeks and everything has been going great!  I was close to being put on bed rest because of my blood pressure.  It was high everytime I went to the doctor.  Since I had been taking my blood pressure through out the day and keeping track of it I was able to show my doctor that it is staying low.  I was very thankful I wasn't put on bedrest.  I didn't want to miss the last week of school and use my days.  I want to keep all the days I have so I can spend more time with the girls in the fall.  I had a meeting with HR and was told that if I have the babies on August 1st then I can stay home with them up until November 7th.  Of course I wouldn't get paid for ALL of the 12 weeks off BUT I have that option.
     We had our 3D Sono on May 14th, at 26 weeks.  It was such an amazing experience!  We were able to see our sweet girls' faces.  Miss Avery was moving around like crazy (like she always does when we get a sono) and we had a hard time getting a good picture of her face.  We ended up getting one shot of her face after many, many tries.  We are going to go back in two weeks to see the girls' again.  I will be 30 weeks at that point.  We can't wait!!!
       At our last regular sono at 24 weeks, Avery weighed 1 lb 2 ozs and Addison weighed 1 lb 3 ozs.  I have my next sono this Wednesday and I'll be 28 weeks.  I am curious to see how much they have grown. 
        Addison had the hiccups the other night!  It was the first time I have felt them get the hiccups.  It scared me a bit. It just seemed so uncomfortable for her.  Of course Avery started moving around like crazy once Addison's hiccups started.  Avery and Addison have both been moving like crazy!  I have felt them moving for a while but now I can see my stomach move.  It is CRAZY!  Especially when they both move at the same time.
        We have the girls' nursery all finished!  I will post those pictures later!


                                                  
             Miss Addison yawning!  Avery's Sac is next
to her face.  Addison was laying her head on Avery's head.
                           It was super sweet!

                   My favorite picture of Addison.  She is
                         showing off her pretty little smile!

                                           Addison resting.

              The one picture of Avery's face.  Isn't she precious?! My
             sister thinks Addison looks like me and Avery looks like
                                               her daddy!

                        Big belly at 25 weeks...and still growing!

                                                  
                  Our very first baby shower!  It was amazing!
                            Our coworkers were so generous.