34 Weeks...

This week I am 34 weeks pregnant! I am ready to be done! It’s funny how new symptoms come and go. Now, my main symptoms are swollen hands and feet! It’s the worst, my hands feel completely arthritic, I cannot open jars or perform small tasks requiring dexterity. And my feet are in agony; whenever I stand, I have to bear all my weight on my toes because my arches are in severe pain. Luckily Nick gives me a foot rub every night:) I am still getting nose bleeds too and pregnancy rash on the back of my hands. I think it’s from the 100% increase in blood volume. Beyond that, other symptoms have passed (thank goodness) like the severe 2am headaches and lower back pain.

My total weight gain as of Tuesday is 57 pounds which I am happy with. I am striving for an overall gain of 60 pounds; based on all the books I’ve read, it is optimal for twin mothers to put on 50-60 pounds in order to grow the healthiest babies possible. Obviously this should not be gained eating McDonalds and junk food!:) If you do not take in enough nutrients, the babies’ growths will be stunted. This is especially crucial with twins since they have to share all of the resources. I am completely tired of eating though, it is just a chore now and I can’t wait to not care anymore. I’ve eaten red meat every other day at least, and it disgusts me now. But – it all seems to have paid off because Louise said they are growing very well!! They are each the same size as a singleton at this point (~4.5 pounds). Here is a chart of their weight progression thus far:

	Weight Progression
Week #	Date	Pun A	Pun B
24	3/5/15	1lb 9oz	1lb 7oz
27	3/26/15	2lb 9oz	2lb 5oz
31	4/23/15	3lb 15oz	3lb 10oz
33	5/7/15	4lb 5oz	4lb 3oz

If I can grow them each to 6 pounds (or close to 6 pounds) by birth, I will be ecstatic.

I am getting a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions. That’s when your stomach tightens up and becomes as solid to the touch as your forehead. But these aren’t real contractions so it seems I am not in imminent threat of labor, which is good! I need to hang on until at least 36 weeks (May 26) so that I can give birth at Tobey hospital. I’ve been there for some tests and the staff seems really nice, and the hospital itself is peaceful and laid back which I really like. I saw Louise this week and had a strep test and she checked my cervix, which she said still looks long. I had non-stress testing at Tobey; that’s when they hook up monitors to your belly – in my case it was three monitors: one for Baby A’s heart rate, one for Baby B’s heart rate, and a third to measure the frequency/duration of my contractions. They are measuring the heart beats to make sure that they respond appropriately to their environment, e.g., if I get a contraction, their heart rates should speed up. If I were to go into labor before 36 weeks, there’s a good chance that Louise would send me to South Shore hospital in an ambulance, because they have the level III NICU and can care for preemies, which Tobey cannot do.

I’ve been working from home which is really nice, whenever I need to, I can just lie back and put my feet up. At the office I was just in total discomfort.

Baby B moves a lot! I can always feel her kicking in my upper right belly. Baby A I’m not as sure of on her movements but I know she’s ok in there; every time I’ve had an ultrasound, they are both moving a ton. I know that my placentas are anterior, so it buffers a lot of their movements. They both get tons of hiccups! Especially Baby B. It is such a bizarre feeling, it’s like a tic in your stomach that keeps pulsing for half an hour. It’s very distracting but comforting to know they are doing ok in there! One time, they both had hiccups, so I had tics alternating on two places in my stomach! Haha!