Tag Archives: Pregnant After Infertility

Grim Twins ~ 32 Weeks

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How far along? 32 Weeks Pregnant
Total weight gain: 36.9 lbs.
Stretch marks?  A few little on the underside of my belly and a couple on my hips (you’d think my hips were big enough already! lol)
Symptoms: Contractions are getting stronger, but no more frequent.  Morning nausea and a little bit of dizziness.  Swelling has been constant now…and no more rings or jewelry.  This week I also had some crazy numbness in my legs as though both of my legs went to sleep.  I’m pretty sure they’ve “dropped” so they’re probably sitting on my nerves.
Sleep: I wake up/roll around a LOT and get up to use the bathroom a lot.  The pregnancy pillow helps, but there’s only so much it can do lol. The usual: About 6-7 hours a night and I try to squeeze in a nap when I can.
Best moment this week: 1) Breastfeeding class at the hospital where our nurse actually had IVF triplets herself!  She was able to offer some good advice and information on feeding multiples and practical tools.  I’m excited because she is a lactation consultant with the hospital and her husband works with the pediatrician’s office that we’ve chosen. 🙂
Worst moment this week: A little stress with our house that we’re renting/normal drama of being stuck in Georgia
Miss Anything?  I still LOVE being pregnant and am so thankful that I get this amazing opportunity.
Movement:  LOTS!!!  Their movements are about the same, but definitely feel more exaggerated with their lack of room and increase in size.
Food cravings/aversions:  GETTING HUNGRY A LOT!!!!  Lobster, fried clams like CRAZY, fries, steamers from home in Maine. 😦  And sammiches again 🙂
Symptoms:  Feeling great but getting really sore off and on.  A little bit of back pain and quite a bit of stretching sensations and soreness.  Starting to stay swollen.
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The usual: Mornings as well as Cigarette smoke and cologne/perfumes.
Labor Signs:  Contractions haven’t been too bad this past week and not showing any signs of labor yet 🙂
Wedding rings on or off? They’ve had to come off for good (during the pregnancy at least).
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy still:)  I am getting more emotional and cry really easily (over sad and happy things).  Hoping they stay safe and “baking” for at least 4 more weeks, but we’re getting more and more anxious/excited to hold them!
Looking forward to:  We start seeing MFM every Tuesday until the birth starting this week!  That means we get to see our sweet babies every single week until they’re born!  We have to get the car seats installed and get Daddy his new truck before the babies get here.  Then we just need to put the finishing touches on everything! 🙂 🙂

Grim Twins ~ 31 Weeks

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How far along? 31 Weeks Pregnant
Total weight gain: 33.9 lbs.
Stretch marks? I’ve started to develop a few little ones on my belly.
Symptoms: LOTS of Heartburn.  Contractions are getting stronger, but no more frequent.  Morning nausea and a little bit of dizziness.  Swelling has been constant now…and no more rings or jewelry.
Sleep: I wake up/roll around a LOT and get up to use the bathroom a lot.  The pregnancy pillow helps, but there’s only so much it can do lol. The usual: About 6-7 hours a night and I try to squeeze in a nap when I can.
Best moment this week: 1) Maternity Pictures!!!!  On Monday we got to take our maternity pictures and got some great pictures!  We had a lot of fun with them and are excited that we were able to get these done before potential bed rest. 2) Final “weekend trip” down in Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida for a marriage retreat with Ryan’s unit.  We got some MUCH needed time in the pool and it was so great to be able to get in the water to take the weight off and cool off.  It’s always great to have a weekend to refresh with your spouse too!
Worst moment this week: Nothing…it was a pretty good week 🙂
Miss Anything?  I still LOVE being pregnant and am so thankful that I get this amazing opportunity.
Movement:  LOTS!!!  Their movements are about the same, but definitely feel more exaggerated with their lack of room and increase in size.
Food cravings/aversions:  GETTING HUNGRY A LOT!!!!  Lobster, fried clams like CRAZY, fries, steamers from home in Maine. 😦  And sammiches again 🙂
Symptoms:  Feeling great but getting really sore off and on.  A little bit of back pain and quite a bit of stretching sensations and soreness.  Starting to stay swollen.
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The usual: Mornings as well as Cigarette smoke and cologne/perfumes.
Labor Signs:  Contractions are coming off and on but nothing new or steady so hopefully they stay that way.  My body can get ready all it wants as long as they stay put for now!
Wedding rings on or off? They’ve had to come off for good (during the pregnancy at least).
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy still:)  I am getting more emotional and cry really easily (over sad and happy things.  Hoping they stay safe and “baking” for a bit longer, but we’re getting more and more anxious/excited to hold them!
Looking forward to:  Our next ultrasound.  We start seeing MFM every Tuesday until the birth starting next week!  That means we get to see our sweet babies every single week until they’re born!  We have to get the car seats installed and get Daddy his new truck before the babies get here.  Then we just need to put the finishing touches on everything! 🙂 🙂

Grim Twins ~ Week 30

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How far along? 30 Weeks Pregnant
Total weight gain: 31.6 lbs.
Stretch marks? I’ve started to develop a few little ones on my belly.
Symptoms: LOTS of Heartburn.  Contractions are getting stronger, but no more frequent.  Morning nausea and a little bit of dizziness.  BP was high this week and now my feet and hands have been swelling like crazy over the last few days.
Sleep: I wake up/roll around a LOT and get up to use the bathroom a lot.  The pregnancy pillow helps, but there’s only so much it can do lol. The usual: About 6-7 hours a night and I try to squeeze in a nap when I can.
Best moment this week: 1) Daddy’s Day!  Sunday is Ryan’s first Daddy’s day and we were so happy to finally have a reason to celebrate.  I’m so thankful that I could finally make him a Daddy and am so excited for many more to come!  I bought him a mug and a shirt that say “Best Dad Evah” plus a sentimental gift that hasn’t come in yet 😦  2) We took our birthing class at the hospital this week.  We actually had a lot of fun with it and learned a few new things and were able to get a few more questions answered by the L&D nurse.  We also got to meet another IVF couple that is having b/g twins and is 4 weeks ahead of us!
Worst moment this week: Pretty good week again.  Monday we saw the MFM again and determined that Logan’s kidneys are still not measuring correctly (still has fluid on one).  We’ll start going in every week at 32 weeks to closely monitor the babies and to check his kidneys one last time.  If he’s still having issues they we’ll have him scanned soon after he’s born.
Miss Anything?  I still LOVE being pregnant and am so thankful that I get this amazing opportunity.
Movement:  LOTS!!!  Daddy has started playing with Logan & Emma and feeling them move in response to his touches and pushes on the belly.  It’s so neat to watch their bond developing already and i’m so blessed to be married to an amazing man that’s going to be the best Daddy ever!
Food cravings/aversions:  GETTING HUNGRY A LOT!!!!  Lobster, fried clams like CRAZY, fries, steamers from home in Maine. 😦  And sammiches again 🙂
Symptoms:  Feeling great but getting really sore off and on.  A little bit of back pain and quite a bit of stretching sensations and soreness.  Starting to swell up a bit more but not sure how much of that was from being on my feet this weekend with the class.
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The usual: Cigarette smoke and cologne/perfumes.
Labor Signs:  Contractions are coming off and on but nothing new or steady so hopefully they stay that way.  My body can get ready all it wants as long as they stay put for now!
Wedding rings on or off? They’ve had to come off for good (during the pregnancy at least).
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy still:)  I do get emotional, but i’ve been mostly happy.  I’m a little scared for the delivery that I won’t get the things that are important to us and I really DON’T want drugs or a C-section.  However, i’m trying to remember that healthy babies/momma are the priority.
Looking forward to:  Maternity pictures!!:)  Tomorrow (June 20th) we’re going to take them with my friend who happens to be our official family photographer! 🙂  So anxious!  This week we have a marriage retreat over the border in Florida at the beach!!  Still need to finish up the “go bags” and put the final touches on the nursery!  After that: it’s the countdown to the birth!

Grim Twins ~ Weeks 27-28

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How far along? 27-28 Weeks Pregnant
Total weight gain: 26.9 lbs.
Maternity clothes? Exclusively (other than Daddy’s shirts to sleep in that I can still fit into ;0)
Stretch marks? A few small ones…we’ll see if I can keep it that way😉
Sleep: I wake up/roll around a LOT and get up to use the bathroom a lot.  The pregnancy pillow helps, but there’s only so much it can do lol. The usual: About 6-7 hours a night then 1-2 naps a week.
Best moment this week: 1) Making it to our 3rd Trimester!!!  2) Our tour of Labor & Delivery (the real one).  We received some great information and got to tour the areas that we didn’t see before.  It’s only made us more and more excited for them to arrive!  Hopefully they stay put for at least 8 more weeks though! 3) Getting all of our nursery items down from the baby showers and finishing out the Amazon registry!  It’s so fun watching everything come together and everything is starting to get more and more real and exciting!
Worst moment this week: At 26 weeks 2 days we had a bit of a scare when Mommy’s “Braxton Hicks” contractions started to get worse and my back started cramping really bad.  After calling my doctor we were told to go straight to the hospital.  After staying in L&D triage until about 10:30 at night they decided to move us to a room and keep us overnight.  I was having contractions, but I didn’t seem to be in active labor and they still wanted to monitor me.  The babies were NOT huge fans of the monitors infringing on their space so they checked us about every 30 minutes until 3am when they decided to let me get a little sleep with just the contractions’ monitor.  Wednesday morning I received another ultrasound to measure me to make sure my body wasn’t going into labor and once we were given the all clear we got to go home!  It was very scary, but we’re so thankful that I didn’t even get put on bed rest.  I’m to take it easy to be my own guide for now.  Hoping they still stay put until August!!
Miss Anything?  Not really.  I LOVE being pregnant and am so thankful that I get this amazing opportunity. I do miss cooler weather!  Savannah is miserable in the Summer as it is….
Movement:  LOTS!!!  Daddy has started playing with Logan & Emma and feeling them move in response to his touches and pushes on the belly.  It’s so neat to watch their bond developing already and i’m so blessed to be married to an amazing man that’s going to be the best Daddy ever!
Food cravings/aversions:  GETTING HUNGRY A LOT!!!!  Craving sammiches, french fries (potato anything) and fried pickles still.  LoL  Oh, and horchata.:)  NO real aversions.
Symptoms:  Feeling great but getting really sore off and on.  A little bit of back pain and quite a bit of stretching sensations and soreness.
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The usual: Cigarette smoke and strong cologne/perfumes.
Labor Signs:  Contractions are coming off and on but nothing new or steady so hopefully they stay that way.  My body can get read all it wants as long as they stay put for now!
Wedding rings on or off? On, except for at night because my hands swell more then.  A few times during the day i’ve had to take my rings off for a little while.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy still:)  I do get emotional, but i’ve been mostly happy
Looking forward to:  Maternity pictures!!:)  I haven’t set them up but i’m so excited to document this journey:)  Also, our final, 3rd Trimester 3D ultrasound is coming up!  Then we get to finish off the registries and get the nursery set up for real!  After that: it’s the countdown to the birth!

Grim Twins ~ Weeks 25-26

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How far along? 25-26 Weeks Pregnant
Total weight gain: 24ish pounds…gaining nice and steady and doc says i’m right on track:)
Maternity clothes? Exclusively (other than Daddy’s shirts to sleep in that I can still fit into ;0)
Stretch marks? A few small ones…we’ll see if I can keep it that way 😉
Sleep: I wake up/roll around a LOT, so I end up napping almost every day now. The usual: About 6-7 hours a night then 1-2 naps a week.
Best moment this week: Both of our amazing baby showers!!!  1) Ryan’s stepmom (along with my mom and Noel) threw us a “Thing 1, Thing 2” shower at her house with some of Ryan’s side of the family, my work friends and a special teacher of mine from High School.  We had so much fun and felt so loved and spoiled!  The baby gifts took up my whole trunk/back seat as well as Mom’s car so we were definitely spoiled!  2) Mom threw us a “Noah’s Ark” shower back home in Maine.  This was so special and important to me since my Maine family never gets to be a part of anything in my life.  My Grammy Smith was even there so I got a picture of 4 generations!!!  It meant the world to me!  I can’t ever thank Mom enough (and Dad for his help) for going home and throwing the shower for us!  We had a blast and Logan & Emma were spoiled once more and we got some Maine/Boston team specific gifts and books that were awesome!
Speaking of Maine, it was sooooo great to be able to go home for a week.  It’s getting harder and harder to live away from home in the military life and it was so great and relaxing to unwind and visit some of our favorite spots.  We also got to take Emma & Logan to their first Red Sox game at Fenway (in the pouring rain) and to get pictures in front of Gillette Stadium.  It was a wonderful, perfect week and we’re even more excited about going home at Christmas/New Year’s for their baby dedication and introduce them to the best place on Earth!
Miss Anything?  Not really.  I LOVE being pregnant and am so thankful that I get this amazing opportunity.
Movement:  LOTS!!!  They are getting more and more powerful and Daddy has felt some pretty strong kicks!  Logan & Emma have even started making my belly move which is so cool to see.   Daddy and I get a kick out of watching them play and move.  It’s sooo amazing to feel.
Food cravings/aversions:  GETTING HUNGRY A LOT!!!!  Craving sammiches, french fries (potato anything) and fried pickles still.  LoL  Oh, and horchata.:)  NO real aversions.
Symptoms:  Feeling great but getting really sore off and on.  A little bit of back pain and quite a bit of stretching sensations and soreness.  I did well on the drives too and from Maine until the last few hours when i’d start to get really sore and uncomfortmable.  Daddy drove the whole way which made it a lot easier for Mommy.  We are excited that the next big road trip will have 2 babies with us (outside of Mommy)!
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The usual: Cigarette smoke and strong cologne/perfumes.
Labor Signs:  NO!  My body is still doing what it needs to and everything has looked great.  Praying we make it to at least 37 weeks with these two :)  I started to have braxton hicks contractions a few weeks ago, but they’re pretty sporadic.
Wedding rings on or off? On, except for at night because my hands swell more then.  A few times during the day i’ve had to take my rings off for a little while.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy still:)  I do get emotional, but i’ve been mostly happy
Looking forward to:  Maternity pictures!! 🙂  I haven’t set them up but i’m so excited to document this journey 🙂  Also, our final, 3rd Trimester 3D ultrasound is coming up!  Then we get to finish off the registries and get the nursery set up for real!  After that: it’s the countdown to the birth!

Grim Twins ~ Weeks 23-24

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How far along? 23-24 Weeks Pregnant
Total weight gain: 17ish pounds…feeling very huge lately, but loving that I have a reason to!!!!!:)
Maternity clothes? Exclusively (other than Daddy’s shirts to sleep in ;0)
Stretch marks? A few small ones
Sleep: I wake up/roll around a LOT, so I end up napping once or twice a week. The usual: About 7-8 hours a night then 1-2 naps a week.
Best moment this week: 1) My first mother’s day was at the 24 week mark and it was perfect!  Ryan bought me a double heart necklace with Logan & Emma’s names in the hearts.  He did so great and it was so wonderful to finally be happy at Mother’s Day.  Although it’s still bittersweet because my heart still breaks for everyone still struggling with pregnancy loss and infertility. 😦  2) Our first baby shower was the day before Mother’s Day.  The theme was “Thing 1, Thing 2” 🙂  Ryan’s mom got to come up from Florida and we had a lot of work friends attend as well.  We definitely felt pretty spoiled and loved!  Emma & Logan are so loved!
Miss Anything?  Not really.  I LOVE being pregnant and am so thankful that I get this amazing opportunity.
Movement:  LOTS!!!  They are getting more and more powerful and Daddy has felt some pretty strong kicks!  Logan & Emma have even started making my belly move which is so cool to see.   Daddy and I get a kick out of watching them play and move.  It’s sooo amazing to feel.
Food cravings/aversions:  GETTING HUNGRY A LOT!!!!  Craving sammiches, french fries (potato anything) and fried pickles still.  LoL  Oh, and horchata. 🙂  NO real aversions.
Symptoms:  Feeling great but getting really sore off and on.  A little bit of back pain and quite a bit of stretching sensations and soreness
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The usual: Cigarette smoke and strong cologne/perfumes.
Labor Signs:  NO!  My body is still doing what it needs to and everything has looked great.  Praying we make it to at least 37 weeks with these two :)  I started to have braxton hicks contractions a few weeks ago, but they’re pretty sporadic.
Wedding rings on or off? On, except for at night because my hands swell more then.  A few times during the day i’ve had to take my rings off for a little while.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy still:)  I do get emotional, but i’ve been mostly happy
Looking forward to:  Getting to go home to Maine for our/my family baby shower.  It’ll be a sort of baby moon for us and our list trip home before these babies get here.  We even get to take the babies to their first Red Sox game at Fenway!

Grim Twins – Weeks 7 & 8

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How far along? 7-8 Weeks Pregnant
Total weight gain: 0 so far…but I gained a lot before I got pregnant due to fertility treatments/not being able to work out, so my doc isn’t concerned.
Maternity clothes? Ryan and my mom both spoiled me in the last few weeks.  It’s mostly from bloat now, but i’m starting to feel a little bit when i’m standing and it’s definitely making my pants tighter (plus maternity clothes are sooooo much more comfy!)
Stretch marks? Not yet…but it’s early yet!
Sleep: EXHAUSTED is not the word for it!  I overdid it a little bit on my business trip to Ft. Bragg leading up to my 8th week and i’ve paid for it this week….in lots of naps. LoL.  The usual: I try to get in about an hour nap or so after lunch then we’re typically in bed before 10 at night.  I watch a little bit of Friends or I read until i’m tired enough to sleep.  Last week I COULD not sleep without Ryan. 😦  I was up every hour it seemed, but this week has been MUCH better, thank God.  Lord knows these babies need Mommy to rest and i’m going to miss sleep once they arrive! 🙂
Best moment this week:  We got to go to my first OB appointment on Wednesday (January 20th) and Tricare actually approved for me to go off post on Prime (a HUGE blessing since it means they’ll pick up the tab).  Although we didn’t get an ultrasound, we will get to see our wee babies in 2 more weeks!  I’ve already been blessed to see them twice though due to a scare last week at Ft. Bragg.  Although it scared the heck out of us and I HATED being away from Ryan, I loved seeing those sweet babies on the screen and watching their little heartbeats.  I couldn’t believe how much bigger they’d become in just a week!   It’s such an amazing feeling watching them on the screen and I can’t wait for us to be able to watch them grow!!
Miss Anything?  SANDWICHES.  I’ve been craving them lately…probably because I know that I can’t have deli meat, but it’s the only thing I really miss.     
Movement:  Not for a few more weeks still…  
Food cravings/aversions:  Mongolian!!!  And we have NOWHERE decent in Savannah.  I was craving pickles early on, but i’ve had more aversions than anything.  Every day it’s something new that sounds gross. LoL
Symptoms:  Still pretty nauseous on and off (sometimes in the morning and sometimes at night).  Mostly just VERY sore and cramping off and on.  I already have to be careful to not get up too fast or make any sudden moves.  Occasional sharp pains here and there, but I was reassured that it’s all normal…especially with multiples.  We have to do twice as much growing, so it starts a lot earlier.
Anything making you queasy or sick:  The usual: Cigarette smoke and strong cologne/perfumes.
Labor Signs:  NO!  Praying we make it to at least 37 weeks with these two 🙂
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy…except when I see everyone else getting snow days but us. 😦 😦  After so many months on and off the fertility drugs, my body is like “What?  Pregnancy?  Piece of cake these hormones!”
Looking forward to:  All of it!!!  Not trying to wish anything away, but definitely ready to be out of the first trimester so I can relax a little more.  I can’t wait to feel the babies moving and to share in everything with Ryan!  I can’t wait for other people besides us two to notice that i’m pregnant too 🙂  Anxious for the next ultrasound in 2 weeks! (February 5th).  And soooo ready to start shopping for the babies and setting up the nursery.