Limes and updates

Lots of updates today. Sorry for being away for a while, but I was at our National Sales Meeting in Phoenix all last week. It was fun to see a few people, but otherwise, just another meeting. Also, I apparently skipped out on the winter storm of 2009 while I was away, so that's never a bad thing to miss either...ice, snow, power outages-yuck!

I'm still feeling just great. Never have had any m/s or nausea of any sort. I just feel so lucky! I have been back in a slight fatigue slump, but I'm chalking it up to time change, meeting hell week, significant work-related stress, etc. Hopefully, I'll bounce back soon. I can't believe I'll be 12 weeks tomorrow! Yippee!

From the Nest/Bump this week: "Your fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through. But, fingers and toes are no longer webbed, and hair follicles, tooth buds and nail beds are forming -- setting up a significantly more attractive future." And, isn't a lime SO much better than a prune? They weigh about 0.44 ounces (about 12.5 grams).

My mom, Steve and I all went baby gear shopping for the first time last Saturday at BRU. In truth, I've never cared for the store really. I've always referred to it as the "evil baby empire." But, the town that I live in really has very few options of baby places to shop and register for everything in one place. As a previous BRU gift registry shopper, I've found the store to be a difficult place to find things in a logical sequence and the staff to be fairly unhelpful. But, as a new Mommy, what other choices do I have? Plus, the on-line registry is an advantage for OOT shoppers, unlike some smaller local stores.

Our biggest dilemma Saturday: which stroller/carseat system to purchase?? We finally decided on the stroller-the Graco Quattro Tour Duo Stroller in the French Roast/Soho color http://www.gracobaby.com/Catalog/Pages/ProductListingPage.aspx?catID=10:441&subCatID=11:104471&pID=10434:42949593961#. This was the only stroller system we could find that we could snap the carseats into for a simple snap and go system. They work with the Graco SnugRide or Infant SafeSeat car seats. And, I really liked the green and brown colors, so at least we've made a couple of decisions. Need to get back over there in the next couple of weeks to make lots and lots and lots of other decisions.

I'll post a belly pic soon. I kinda "popped" this week while I was in Phoenix. I was a little upset that Steve wasn't there. It's been his favorite little thing to be on the "belly watch." Every morning, he would reach over, pat my stomach to see if I had grown overnight. I think that was the worst part about being away. I really disliked last week, can't you tell??? So glad to be home....

And one last thing, my thoughts about this lady and her octuplets being born last week: I think she is a very disturbed individual, I think she didn't do IVF (it's only been confirmed by the grandmother and I know how often people refer to all fertility treatments as IVF), I think she needs serious psychiatric management, I think her mother should've stepped in since the daughter was "obsessed with having children", I'd like to know how she paid for it, I think her fertility doc may reside in Mexico (or somewhere other than the U.S.), amd I could go on and on about this person. Unfortunately, because the media loves to sensationalize these types of stories, this has set back the progress that has been made in infertility. I hope the real story comes out soon and I hope no one decides to put this quack on TV for the world to watch every week like "Jon & Kate Plus 8"...

Week 10 Ultrasound pic

I have 3D images of them both individually, but I don't think the one of Baby A is flattering, so trying to be a fair Mommy, I'll only put the one of them together up today. :-) The tech spent a good 10-15 minutes on the u/s today. We were in heaven. I just enjoyed "spending time with them" even though they're technically always with me.

What a fun appt. today! Baby A was a busy little bee right from the start, jumping all over the place. Baby B was my little quiet sweetheart. But after 5 minutes of watching Baby A get all the laughters, he decided to join in as well and was moving all over the screen, too. So, both are active and healthy. Baby A's heart rate was 167 and Baby B's was 162 and both are measuring 10w5d. Perfect! I don't know if it's something I ate prior to the appt to make them so crazy, or maybe that's just what they're doing in there, but it was funny. All I could think was: my future ADHD children...

In the sweet 3D image of Baby B, he had his little arms in front of his eyes. It was like he was saying "No more ultrasound wand poking at me." Too cute. Baby A had his back to us, so we couldn't make much out of him. But, the ultrasound tech did say she saw "boy parts" on Baby A. She didn't know our history, so we kinda laughed and said that we already knew that. She couldn't see Baby B's, but maybe next time. I've got my NT Scan appt. with perinatologist on Feb. 4th. Can't wait to see them again.

Steve saved the u/s in his phone and labeled the pic with 2 boy names. I'm not yet willing to share what they are with the world, but they are 2 of my 4 favorites, so maybe we're coming to some decisions on their names...to be continued...

I won't be putting up the 10 week Nest/Bump fruit description this week because it's a picture of a prune. I think prunes are disgusting, so I can't compare my babies to that. But here is a little more info about this week in development: "With bones and cartilage starting to form and vital organs beginning to function, baby is making major progress. Body length will almost double in the next three weeks, and arm joints are now working. (Soon, legs will too.)" Average size is 1.2inches and weight is 0.18 ounces (or 5 grams).

In other huge news-I graduated today from CCRM! It was so sad to speak to my nurse, I'm gonna miss her/all IVF RNs. They are so wonderful. My final P4>60, so definitely no med concerns. I feel like a normal pregnant gal. Also, Dr. Sch let me d/c the Metformin today, too. Yay! It's just been a great day and I've been walking on Cloud 9 ever since our appt...

NO MORE MEDS!

That's right: I'm finished. I'm so freakin' happy!!!! I had b/w yesterday to check my levels and both were great: E2=2761 despite weaning from Estrace tablet over the weekend and my P4>60 so I was able to skip the Prometrium supps the past 2 nights. Final check tomorrow to make sure that the P4 level hasn't dropped, but that would be unlikely since I've been greater than 60 for the past several b/w checks. So, I've been livin' it up the past 2 days. I feel so liberated. This is just fantastic timing so that I don't have to take extra meds with me to Phoenix on Sunday.

OB check-up tomorrow! Can't wait to see the babies!!

Green Olives

"Your little embryo has now officially graduated to fetus-hood. Adding to the excitement, a Doppler ultrasound device might be able to pick up the beating heart. With basic physical structures in place and increasingly distinct facial features, baby is kind of starting to look like... well... a baby!"

The babies weigh around 3 grams or 0.11 ounces. I still feel great and have actually been a little less tired than previous weeks. Even though I've only gained about 2.5 pounds, my clothes are feeling different. On Monday, I couldn't take my suit for a full work day and decided to run to Motherhood Maternity over lunch and get their version of a Bella Band. I really needed to get some belly relief! It helped a lot! So, maybe this will hold off full-on maternity clothes for at least a month.

We have our next OB appt. next Wed. More b/w today. Everything still looks great. E2=2438 even after taking off last patch, so I take my final Estrace tablet this weekend and then I'm done with estrogen! Yippee! P4>60, therefore I am also able to decrease 1 more Prometrium supp, so I'll be on just 1 supp at night beginning on Saturday. Re-checking levels on Monday. So happy. Can't wait for my legs/nerves/butt to recover from PIO. I have shooting nerve pain down both my legs. Praying it goes away with time...

More weaning...

My levels were drawn again today. E2=2,222 after weaning down to 1 patch, so I was told to take the last patch off today! Only 1 Estrace tablet to go. Yay! P4>60 still, so I weaned down to 2 Prometrium supps. Re-checking levels on Wednesday. I'm tired of the 2-3 blood draws per week, but at the same time, I like the escalated weaning procedure. I have to be OOT for work beginning week of Jan. 25 with no ability to get b/w drawn whatsoever. So, I think they wanted to kick it in high gear. Yippee! Maybe I'll be off everything before I leave for my business trip! A girl can hope!

Kidney Beans/Raspberries

Babycenter has great twin pics every 4 weeks, so I'm gonna be alternating the Nest baby growth information with these better pics as often as possible! Here's what is going on this week with the boys:

"New this week: Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from your baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. You may be daydreaming about your baby as one sex or the other, but the external genitals still haven't developed enough to reveal whether you're having a boy or a girl. Either way, your baby — about the size of a kidney bean — is constantly moving and shifting, though you still can't feel it."

This is a big growth week for the babies as they are growing about 1mm a day. They have their first weight measurements this week too: 0.035 ounces. Gotta start somewhere, right? Finally, just heard from my nurse, I can wean off more meds! NO MORE PIO!!!!! I feel like it's a "Ding, Dong, the witch is dead" kind of day! My progesterone level is still >60, even after going down to 1/2cc earlier this week, so I'm finished! Also, my estrogen level rebounded back to 2,337. So, I get to take off another patch tomorrow! Re-checking levels again on Monday. Only 3 more Prometrium supps, 1 more Vivelle patch, and 1 Estrace tablet to go, then I'm finished!! Yippee!!

Quick hormone updates

My estrogen was 1779 on Tuesday, and because this was a drop from 2150 last week, I have to remain on the 2 patches and 1 Estrace tablet for now. Hopefully next time, I can wean 1 more patch. As far as progesterone goes, great news-it was >60. I, of course, wanted a specific number, but the nurse told me that it is common to see this general result when the level is over 60. So, last night, I was able to decrease to 1/2cc PIO. Nice! I have to go back on Friday to re-check levels. I debated weaning the Prometrium as I hate it almost as much as PIO at this point. It's gross. Oh well, still on track to be weaned from everything by end of first trimester at the latest. My poor veins...they look awful. I'm glad it's winter right now, so no one can see my bruises.

Initial OB appt.

Of course, I had to start out with a new ultrasound pic! The twins looked great and were both within the appropriate ranges for growth. I'm so relieved. They've grown a lot in 2 weeks!

My OB appt. took longer than I had anticipated. My nurse and MD reviewed all of the scary twin info. Always nice to hear. I get to go back in 2 weeks for another OB u/s. Yippee! My OB knows how much of a procedure junkie I am, so I'm glad to get another appt so quickly! I also had b/w drawn today for the initial OB panel. Fine, but I told the nurse 90% of it was unnecessary as I've had almost all the b/w within the last 6 months at CCRM. Oh well, sounded like a pain to waive everything, so please Mrs. Vampire, take more of my blood...

Speaking of vampires, I went to see "Twilight" finally tonight with my friend, Gina. We had so much fun and would appear to both have strong crushes on Edward. How can we not? I was hooked when I read the entire novel in one day on bedrest following my FET in Denver over Thanksgiving. I kept thinking, "Bite me Edward, kiss me." Steve doesn't care about my crush. That's good.

Finally, last blood reference, E2 and P4 bloodwork looked good today too. I'll post more specifics later. A good day though and I hope the bad dreams are gone for a while at least...