Furrow at Seed Dispersal Mechanisms has flattered me to blushing by naming me a Rockin' Girl Blogger. I could take a pass on the pink banner, but here's what she had to say:

Tinker at Tinkering with the Works is just the kind of no-nonsense gal I wish I knew in my face-to-face life. She doesn't post terribly often, but that's probably because she's too busy organizing her home office, creating spreadsheets to help her select her next perfect car, or scouring her town for just the right nanny. Every time I read one of her posts I feel inspired to get on with something useful rather than indulging in my usual introspective whiny, blah-blah-blah. Tinker is expecting twins in a few months, and if anyone can handle such a load on top of a toddler, I'm sure it's Tinker (not that you have to be superwoman, Tinker).

I thought that was pretty cool. I might have used words like documentary, dry, and probably boring, but "no-nonsense" seems so much nicer. Thanks Furrow! I'd send it right back to you if you hadn't already been named a rocker yourself!

Now the challenge is to choose five additional deserving women.

Manuela at Thin Pink Line is a woman with a dear heart. She very openly talks about issues surrounding her adoption and her life with some rather awful adoptive parents. She and her husband also struggle with infertility and while she desperately wants to become a mother, having given birth to a daughter much too soon in the second trimester colours her feelings about cycling. Her writing is very engaging.

Kath at Inhospitable is an American sweetheart married to a German doc, living in Germany. Her day-to-day life is an interesting background for her stories of infertility, though she is now nearing the end of a non-ART pregnancy with what is certainly a beautiful daughter.

Aurelia at No Matter How Small is an amazingly strong woman. She has two boys who are growing up far too quickly and continues to battle a variety of infertility issues for another baby. But not only is she battling for herself and her family, she is very politically active and both lobbies and advises the Canadian government on issues related to ART.

MB at Can PCOS and CBAVD Make Three? recently gave birth to a handsome little boy after making the brutal decision to reduce her quadruplet pregnancy. Her observations about the medical system in New York are interesting, and she also often posts about the little things many people overlook when preparing for a cycle or a baby. Of course, her observations about life in New York itself are interesting given that she is an expat from France.

Adrienne at Max's Mommy just puts it all out there. I don't think she holds anything back when it comes to her emotions about not yet having a second child. Even her current pregnancy is fraught with intense concern about its continuation. She's the kind of woman for whom you just hope things will work, even just to give her a bit of a break.

You women rock!

Labels: More About Me

I'm suddenly having an issue with percentiles being measured on a twin scale versus a singleton scale. The perinatologist at my ultrasound this week told me that the percentiles he calculated were for singletons of the appropriate gender. At the ultrasound prior to that one, another peri told me that the percentiles are calculated based on a scale developed for twins.

Now either is fine, but these perinatologists work in the same clinic, using the same software to compile the measurements and other data that the ultrasound tech gets during the scan. The reports that go to my OB appear to be printed by this same software. Would that not suggest that the scale is the same and that one peri is confused?

I suppose it doesn't really matter, because either way my kids seem to be growing fine, but it might look better for them to get their stories straight.

Labels: Rants and Shoot-Em-Up Stories, Twins

I had a clever title for this one come to me last night, but of course, with pregnancy brain x2 I certainly can't remember it today.

So first, the all-important kid data:
Baby A (boy) 2157g (4lbs 12oz), 90th percentile for a singleton male, BPP=8
Baby B (girl) 1761g (3lbs 14oz), 50-60th percentile for a singleton female, BPP=8
They're chubbing up too, as their head circumferences are now only marginally bigger than their abdominal circumferences.

Curiously, when any of the perinatologists come to talk to me after the tech is finished scanning, they give me weights for the babies that are always a bit higher than the numbers that are printed on the report that my OB gets (I always take a copy). They must have a quick-and-dirty calculation that they do before they write up the reports that do the full calculation.

For the first time since the nuchal scan, one of the babies has made a move. Baby B flipped her head over to my right side while I waited just before the ultrasound. She's now whispering her nefarious plans to her brother, but they're still transverse and everybody is convinced that they're not going to change that until the OB goes in to get them out. Because they aren't getting out with my cervix closed and still long at 4cm.

I'm still a pound shy of my retrieval-day weight. That's pretty cool given that I've got almost 9 pounds of baby plus accessory organs, increased blood volume and all that counted in that total. I'm quite happy not to gain much weight as long as the kids keep packing it on!

Labels: Pregnancy 5, Twins

In a country as safe as Canada is reputed to be, we don't worry a whole lot about carjackings, random drive-by shootings, or banks being held up while we go about our business -- certainly not in the middle of the day in suburbia.

Little R and I ran errands this morning, including a trip to the bank to buy a foreign currency draft. The lineup was long, but he entertained himself by running around and pushing the automatic door opener buttons while I held our place in line. When our turn came, I scooped him up and set him on the counter next to me. There was nothing out of the ordinary until he decided he wanted to go down to run about some more and flailed to emphasize his point.

In that instant a gunshot rang through the bank.

Or at least that's what the look on every face in that crowded bank would have told you. My little man, in his frantic bid to be set free, had popped a balloon taped to the side of the teller's counter. The nervous chuckles that started as people realized what had really happened spoke a lot about the moment of panic that they had had compliments of a restless two-year-old.

Labels: Little R

I'm just back from the OB and he agreed to 37.5 weeks for a c-section! It was interesting to watch him book it, as after making my case for a date sooner than 38.5 weeks we ended up at the nurse's desk and he simply opened his calendar, confirmed "You're due October 27th, right?", I nodded, and he asked "How about the 10th?", while he scribbled my name into his calendar. He picked up the phone, dialled a number and without giving his name stated "I need to book a c-section." Now, not only were he and I standing there, but there was a resident as well as the medical student I met two weeks ago. They were both looking surprised and one suggested "You've just seen the hand of God in action." The only reason this made any sense to me is because the perinatologist at the radiology clinic yesterday mentioned that they make a point of keeping my OB happy because he is the guy in charge. I don't yet know in charge of what (the department at the hospital? all of obstetrics for our health region?), but whatever it is, he is clearly the big boss. Maybe I should have done more research, but I actually chose him originally because he is reputed to do a beautiful running stitch to close a c-section. This time I may actually get to see it.

Oh and that date?... October 10 at 10am? My husband thinks it's brilliant because we married 03/03(/03). 10/10 for the kids was too perfect.

Labels: Pregnancy 5

him: 1606g (3lbs9oz) 90th percentile, transverse, BPP=8
her: 1312g (2lbs14oz) 70th percentile, transverse, BPP=8
cervix: 4cm

So he is consistently in the 90th percentile and she is growing, having moved up a bit from 65th percentile two weeks ago. The peri actually thinks that she is a bit larger, as her femur length (which is factored into the weight estimate) was difficult to measure with her legs holding her brother in a headlock. My cervix is down 1.3cm, but the docs are happy with anything over two centimetres and thrilled if it measures three or more. I have to wonder if some of the difference is due to an afternoon versus a morning appointment. Hmmm, I'll have to try to remember to ask my OB tomorrow.

Labels: Pregnancy 5, Twins

Perhaps its because the novelty of this pregnancy has worn off, or because I'm suddenly affected more by some of the symptoms of being in the third trimester with twins, but I'm ready to be done with this pregnancy now.

My list of miseries includes pelvic girdle pain (aka sacro-iliac joint pain), which feels like sciatica but is caused by the loosening of the joints in the back of the pelvis. What is happening to me specifically is that I suddenly can't walk on my left leg due to weakness and a certain amount of pain. It comes and goes and is usually worst after a day of activity, but I've had enough. It's frustrating to not be mobile when you want to be. About a week ago I started waking in the night to pee at around 04:30 and while that was still okay, I'm now waking three or four times for no good reason -- very frustrating. My tummy is really taut and I'm starting to get stretch marks above the level of my belly button. I had soooooo hoped to avoid this because the tummy tuck I have planned for three or four years from now would take care of the lower ones, but now I'll have marks anyhow. Sigh. And if I stand for long periods, the pressure I feel in my abdomen becomes unbearable. The general soreness in my tummy doesn't ever seem to abate completely, so that's not fun either. I was starting to get a bit of edema, but caught a 24-hour stomach bug late last week that seems to have cleared it up. Mind you, I do feel the puffiness returning slowly to my hands. It was worsening edema that made me especially antsy to have my son delivered over two years ago, though being a week overdue didn't help.

So that's my pregnancy whinge for the day. Yes, I can add all the disclaimers about being happy to be pregnant at all, my complaints being relatively minor compared to some, bla, bla, bla, but I still don't feel as wonderful as I did and can't wait to see if I can talk my OB into a scheduled c-section at 37 or 37.5 weeks instead of the 38.5 weeks he had originally mentioned.

Labels: Pregnancy 5, Rants and Shoot-Em-Up Stories, Twins

Okay, I have some catching up to do, as we've been away camping again and I still have no comfortable seating in front of this computer for the forseeable future.

I had my most recent ultrasound on August 1st at 27w4d. There was a medical intern in the radiology lab who sat in on our ultrasound so we got the very detailed play-by-play as the tech explained everything to the intern -- it was wonderful for me and I think even a bit educational for my husband as he was able to understand so much more of what he was seeing.

The measurements? Oh... no proud parents here: Baby A, our boy, measured a whopping two weeks ahead at three pounds. Baby B, our girl, who last measured a day behind did a lot of catching up and was measuring a half week ahead at two-and-a-half pounds. She is in the 65th percentile for a female and our son is measuring in the 90th percentile for a male. It's no wonder I'm feeling so huge!

My cervix measured 5.3cm and was still closed. The perinatologist who went over the scan with us afterwards was absolutely confident that the kids wouldn't be making an appearance in the next six weeks (nearly 34 weeks). The news couldn't be any better. Interestingly, both babies are still transverse -- in the same positions they have been practically since we could see the fetal poles -- so I'm not holding out a lot of hope for a trial of labour (VBAC), not that I was really counting on one anyhow.

I had a follow-up appointment with my OB the next day. He too had a medical student with him who came in before my OB did and took a complete history before checking on the babies. I heard the two of them consulting out in the hall (the teacher quizzing the pupil) after the student left and before my OB came in, and I had to laugh at how quickly the student was cut off from giving my whole history back to my OB. When they came in and I mentioned listening in on their conversation, my OB chuckled that he just wanted to know how the babies were doing. He's a very to-the-point guy, and I like that about him. I trust him to tell me what he thinks even if he knows it's not what I want to hear. This was the case when he suggested that if I want a VBAC he would support me but that truly he thinks it's too risky, not just because of my fear of losing my uterus entirely to a rupture, but because "nobody goes through IVF to get pregnant only to risk losing a baby at delivery". Fair enough. He promised we would set a date for a c-section at my next appointment (August 16th). Oh, and my diabetes screen was perfectly fine, as I had expected.

Labels: Pregnancy 5, Twins