Our sweet little (very active) girls

I had to go to Sunnybrook Hospital today for an initial ultrasound before we officially start going to their Twin Clinic.  Sunnybrook is completely anal and want "perfect" ultrasound shots so reports from other clinics won't do. I won't complain in this instance!

The girls were not being very well behaved for the tech today. They wouldn't stop moving long enough for him to get most shots. As they twisted, turned and flipped away from him, I had visions of these two very active little girls running around the house. Mom, can we get them on the ice sooner than age 2?! ;) In the end, his patience and expertise prevailed and I was given two thumbs up that they are both looking great. So far, Twin A is in the 46 percentile for weight/size and twin B is in the 50 percentile.

Here are two great shots that he got today:

The verdict is in...

So far, we have two healthy, growing babies! We just got home from a 1 hour and 45 minute anatomy ultrasound. The tech looked at absolutely everything - every limb, bone, organ, fluid in certain places, the list goes on. She ran measurements and got their weights. Twin A currently weighs a hearty 348g (or 3/4 of a pound to you non-metric folks). Twin B comes in slightly smaller at 330g. Overall, A is measuring one day ahead of B, but that's no biggie. They are both weighing slightly above the average 20-week fetus weight actually. Jenn just told me, "keep eatin'!"

The babies tossed and turned and punched and kicked, making it a little bit more difficult for the tech to get all of her measurements. Thankfully, she was patient with our little gymnasts. Ultrasounds are incredible. She showed us the 4 chambers of the heart, their perfect little spines and even their mouths opening and closing. The finishing touch was twin A giving us a big wave goodbye as the tech got the last measurement. Here are pictures of each baby:

Oh so I guess you're all wondering what we're having?! Did any of you scroll to the bottom to see if I actually mentioned it? ;) We're having 2 girls! We never expected this but are excited nonetheless! Jenn is actually already out buying their ballet shoes...kidding, of course! She's actually sitting on the couch trying to get in touch with her inner girly-girl, just in case!!

We're ready to be parents!

...well not quite. This weekend we took a crash prenatal course. It was definitely intensive - 2.5 hours on Friday night followed by 8 hours on Saturday and another 8 hours on Sunday. We took the course through the 519 Community Centre in Toronto. With that being said, it was a great course to get us thinking about the reality that is to come, besides looking at baby furniture, strollers and cute clothing. We met some great couples who are all having babies at some point between March and June. 

Saturday was mostly spent on the "painful" part, labour. Let's just say a skeleton pelvis and baby doll were used in several demonstrations. We also watched a video that was made in the 70s in an Austrian birthing centre. No more details will be given. At one point, we split into two groups; the preggos and the support people. Our group talked about what we think we'll need from our support people during labour.  The other group talked about what they think we'll need. We learned all about some of the things that we need to think about in the next few months before the four of us become six. Despite the pelvis and the video, I don't feel scared, of labour anyways. I'm sure it'll hit me at some point, but right now, the physical pain isn't freaking me out. 

Sunday was all about the baby (babies). We talked about those first few minutes of life and what to expect. We discussed some of the possible complications that can arise. We learned about swaddling, diapers, baby first aid and even touched upon the controversial topic of vaccinations. A couple and their 5-month old came in to discuss their birth experience. We were also lucky enough to have a family lawyer come in to answer our legal questions. 

Feeling armed with new baby knowledge, we came home on Sunday night and made our first big baby purchase! We bought a stroller. We had done a ton of stroller research but ended up being sold on this one by another couple in our class who are also expecting twins. It's called the Baby Jogger City Select (double, of course). We'll be able to easily snap two car seats in it. Since it sits on a single stroller frame, I won't look like one of those twin moms pushing a stretch limo down the street. Here it is:

The pregnancy card works again and the twin card...

...drives it home!

As my brother Michael told me while we boarded the plane for our 4-hour flight down south, "Ash, you've gotta milk this pregnancy thing for all it's worth!" He was telling me that I should throw out the pregnancy/twin card to get bumped up to first class with my parents. I didn't do it.

Michael's words echoed in my head this morning when I went to the court house to fight a ticket that I had received. We had to wait in line to speak with the prosecutor before the trials began. I took off my jacket to clearly display my ever-expanding abdomen. The prosecutor didn't even look up while she asks for my name. She checked me off her list. Thankfully, something caught her eye and she looked up from her little desk to see my stomach. "Oh you're pregnant! You're going to want to leave early. I'm putting a star next to your name so that you get called early on," she says. "Yes, I'm pregnant with twins actually," I tell her. "Oh my gosh! Ok ok!" She says, adding two more stars next to my name.

Once in the packed court room, I waited for all of 8 minutes before my name was called fourth on a list of about 60-70 people. Within seconds my case was withdrawn and I was "free to go."

Thank you twins :)

Introducing the "2dogs"

I've talked about the 2 moms. I've obviously talked a lot about the 2 babies. Our other 2 furry babies, the 2 dogs, have not been given the attention they deserve on my blog.

Jenn and I have two Wheaten Terriers; almost 4-year old Riley and almost 7-month old Finn.

They are the sweetest and most lovable dogs anyone could ask for. They just spent two weeks on vacation. They stayed with my parents for a week over Christmas while Jenn and I spent the holidays with her family in Connecticut and then visited some friends in Boston. They then spent another week with my wonderful aunt while my parents took us all on vacation to the Caribbean. 

My family has had Wheaten Terriers since I was a young kid. They are incredible family dogs (for all of you parents and future parents!) and are hypoallergenic because they don't shed. We are extremely fortunate to have so many experienced Wheaten-sitters so close by. My aunt also had a Wheaten named Sunnee. 

Riley and Finn are attention whores. Yeah, I said it. One of them is always sitting next to us or on us on the couch. It's difficult to give one attention without the other running over. They have given themselves the title of 'welcoming committee,' so when we're at the park or out walking, they need to greet everyone.  

I have to admit that I'm a bit worried about not being able to give them the attention they need when the babies arrive. Luckily, they both LOVE children. Riley, in particular, has a soft spot for our friends' baby, Tessa. I've babysat Tessa a couple of times. Riley is fascinated by her. He always wants to smell her and give her little kisses. He's incredibly gentle with her. It's absolutely adorable. Here they are together:

I could write pages about Riley and Finn and all of the amusing things that they do, but honestly, I can't imagine that I'd have too many readers by the end of the entry. So I'll leave it at that...our two wonderful boys :)

Ultrasound #4

When you're pregnant with twins, you have more appointments, more ultrasounds, more tests...To be honest, I don't mind having an ultrasound every four weeks. It is absolutely amazing to see the babies growing like weeds and now moving around like crazy.

On new years eve, we went to an ultrasound clinic. Ultrasounds one through three were at the fertility clinic and Mount Sinai. Mount Sinai is a Toronto hospital that has a specialized OB ultrasound clinic. The experience at the hospital was great. The tech was friendly and patient while she waited for both babies to get into the right positions for certain measurements. She took the time to explain everything to us. Unfortunately, our experience on new years eve wasn't quite so positive. Firstly, they wouldn't allow Jenn to come in for the ultrasound until the very end. The tech worked quickly and said that she wasn't allowed to answer any questions or give us any information. When Jenn finally came in, the tech turned the screen to show us the babies. While she gave us a few pictures, they were all of baby B. She wouldn't wait for baby A to get in a better position.

Maybe I'm being naive and this is the "normal" ultrasound experience or maybe Mount Sinai's awesome tech set the bar a little high for us. At the end of the day, it was awesome to see the babies again but it was still difficult to leave there not knowing if all went well.

Stay tuned for ultrasound #5 when the babies' genders will be determined!