A Trial Run at Being Big Brothers

I babysat my friend's 8-month old girl on Friday for a few hours. They are heading off on a big trip so she took a few hours to get some things done. Selfishly, I thought it was a great opportunity to see how Riley and Finn would react to a baby.

The two of them were in awe of her from the second we walked in the house. Riley is a gentle soul, so I knew he'd be fine. Finn is 8-months old himself, so I feared that the baby would be a puppy to him. Both of them were great though! They were in her face a bit too much initially - she wasn't having it. Once she warmed up to them, she tried to grab at their faces any chance she got!

She was sitting in the middle of the couch at one point between Riley and me. She kept reaching for him and falling over in the process. I finally moved her closer to him. This was the result:

Riley did try to smother her with kisses a few times, but I promptly ended the love fest. I didn't want to send her home with a rash reeking of doggie breath!

All in all, I think that the boys did great and are definitely ready to be big brother to two little girls!

Family Day

Ontario created a new holiday called Family Day a few years ago. It's basically a fake holiday...an excuse to have a day off in mid-February. While living in the US, I loved having the Christmas/New Years break, followed by Martin Luther King Day in January and then Presidents Day in February. It made the winter months just a little bit easier to get through. Anyways, I'm not complaining about this new fake holiday! I think it's great :) It's also nice to have Jenn home for a long weekend. 

This weekend we finally picked out the paint colours for the girls' room - light green with some purple. Jenn has some other creative ideas for the walls. Once decisions have been made and painting has commenced, I'll post some pictures. 

Yesterday we also met up with Allison and Jen who have an adorable 6-week old baby named Oliver. Allison has a blog as well - http://2momstobe.blogspot.com/. We had a great time getting to them and their very well-behaved little boy. He barely made a peep for the entire 2 hours we spent at Te Aro in Leslieville. I'm hoping that our girls will follow Oliver's lead when they arrive! Allison also made(!) our babies two adorable toques (Canadian-speak for hat). I'm very impressed by her crocheting skills!

We then came home to a present in the mail from my friend Lauren:

We already have two very lucky little girls! Thank you so much Allison and Lauren!

The Twin Clinic

We had our first appointment at the Multiples Clinic at Sunnybrook Hospital on Tuesday. If you're having more than one baby in Toronto, it is definitely the place to be. 

As I mentioned in a previous post, I went to Sunnybrook a few weeks ago for an ultrasound. They wanted to repeat the scan that I had had done at another clinic earlier in the week because they weren't happy with it. They are extremely detail-oriented (read: anal)...probably a good thing when it comes to two developing babies ;)

Anyways, yesterday we met with the head doctor and nurse of the clinic. They went over the anatomy scan with us. The babies, as we knew, are developing very well! But, as a self-professed worrywort, it was nice to be reassured by the experts. We quickly found out that we'll be at the clinic every two weeks for an ultrasound and doctor's visit. This is standard protocol for multiple pregnancies at the hospital. It definitely does seem like a ton of visits, but they obviously do it this way for a reason. There will be no shortage of pictures of our growing little girls!

Epidural? C-Section? Everyone's questions...

There are a few questions that I've heard from several people. Are you going to have an epidural? Do you have your c-section scheduled? Are you going to dress the girls alike? The list goes on...

First off, I love the questions. I would much rather people ask then sit there wondering and making assumptions. That was a big reason I started this blog actually. I know that sometimes people have questions (ie. how did you guys get pregnant?), but are too shy to ask. So, please, if you're curious about something, ask away! If you're too shy, hopefully I'll read your mind and answer it on here. 

So, I met with the OB for the first time last week. Our midwives referred me to her because she delivers a lot of twins. She also had twins herself. As long as the pregnancy remains uneventful, I don't need to see the OB again, although she (or another OB) will be delivering the twins. We're also under the care of  a specialized Twin Clinic, so we're definitely becoming well-informed. 

Ok, so questions:

Epidural?: The OB told me last week that they strongly advise an epidural in twin pregnancies. Providing baby A is head-down, I can have a natural birth. Sometimes baby B doesn't drop down and so there can be minor complications. They can get the baby out more easily if I'm numbed by the epidural.

C-Section?: It's not a given that twins need to be delivered by c-section. The biggest determining factor for c-section or no c-section is the position of baby A. If baby A is anything but head down, a c-section is necessary. A c-section is also necessary if they come very prematurely. 

When will the babies arrive?: The OB said that twins will be delivered by 37-38 weeks at the very latest (38 weeks = May 28). Many people go into spontaneous labour with twins around 35-37 weeks, which is totally normal, she says. If I haven't gone into labour on my own, they will induce at that point. 

So you're high-risk, right?: Most people assume that because I'm pregnant with twins, I'm high-risk. Fortunately, at this point, I'm not high-risk at all. This is because: I'm not in the high-risk age group (>35), not overweight, overall healthy, the twins are developing normally and are fraternal (2 placentas) and not identical. There are probably other reasons, but I can't remember them now. 

Dressing them alike: At this point, we have not purchased 2 of anything! They'll be grouped together enough so we'd rather dress them as individuals. 

Jumping to the 3rd trimester already?!

....well not exactly.

We went to see our midwives today. I was curious to know how much smaller I'd be if I was only carrying one baby. It turns out I'm measuring 28-30 weeks pregnant, even though I'm only 22 1/2 weeks at this point! Measuring 6+ weeks ahead is completely normal for twin pregnancies. Regardless of what's normal or not, I can't help but think about being 30 weeks pregnant and measuring 36 weeks. Then I think about 6 weeks after that when I will be measuring 42 weeks! Jenn's going to have to hold me up by one of those kiddie leash things (see below) so I don't fall on my face. But hey, I'll measure 50 weeks if it means that our babies come out healthy and at good weights!

In other news, Jenn felt our little kickboxer, baby B, for the first time last night! Baby B comes alive when the sun goes down, so when she started kicking and punching, I told Jenn to put her hand on my right side. Sure enough, she socked Jenn's hand a few times! With a huge smile on her face, she looked at me with wide eyes and said, "Oh my God! Was that it?!" It was priceless :)

18 and 22-week bump pictures!

The long-awaited new bump pictures...I should have stood facing the same way in the 22 week picture, but you get the idea. I've gained 20 pounds so far and probably have about another 20 to go. The girls are growing like little weeds, just the way we want it!

                                                  18 weeks                                                     

22 weeks

"She's gonna be a soccer player. She is...SHE ISSS!"

If you've seen the movie Billy Madison as many times as I have, you'll recognize the quote. If you haven't, just know that I'm not totally nuts :)

Last night, our little one-pound Baby B officially made her presence known. After getting in bed, she started turning, punching and kicking. I felt her at least ten different times. While I'd felt little movements here and there, this was the first time I really felt one of the babies. It mostly felt like little thumps on the right side of my abdomen (A's on my left and B's on my right). At one point, it felt like little bubbles rolled across my right side (which is when she probably rolled over).

Baby A has an anterior placenta. This means that the placenta is implanted on the front of my uterus so it stands between the baby and me feeling her kicks. I will feel them eventually but with an anterior placenta, it just takes a little bit longer. Baby B has a posterior placenta so it is implanted on the back of my uterus. Therefore, nothing stands in the way of me feeling her kicks.

Anyways, it was pretty amazing to finally (officially) feel one of them! Even though I clearly look pregnant, I knew that once I started to finally feel them, it would become even more real. Stay tuned for more bump pictures - an 18 week and 22 week pic!

Our giant Shrek-puppy and skinny mini

The boys went in for hair cuts; Riley on Tuesday and Finn on Wednesday. Both of them were extremely shaggy and in desperate need of new 'dos. I was reluctant to take them in because it's been so cold and snowy, but there was no way we could have waited for another month.

Here are the boys before their cuts...adorable and shaggy (and slightly homeless-looking), yes. Easy for me to keep clean, no. Finn on the left and Riley on the right.

So, I've been a very neglectful dog parent when it came to keeping the boys brushed and mat-free. Growing up with Wheatens, you'd think that I would have learned by now that they need to be brushed regularly, especially when you have two hooligans who get themselves wet and dirty constantly. I got a major lecture from our groomer about the importance of brushing and combing them regularly. This is what happens when you neglect your grooming duties...Riley on the left and Finn on the right:

Riley got completely shaved down (and is shockingly not cold at all - I get asked why he's not in a coat by almost everyone). Finn did not get shaved because at 7-months he's still too skinny and doesn't have a ton of body fat, so he would probably get cold. He looks like Shrek because his ears had to be cut super short (a result of mats behind them). Also, please note how HUGE Finn now looks next to Riley. He is officially taller than him. 

I'm sorry boys. I've learned my lesson :(