Another Doctor Visit

Our doctor’s appointment went good today. Jen is very uncomfortable and is having a hard time with the swelling in her feet and legs. (See photos below of what she calls her “porky pig feet” her words not mine) Jen also had an 11 lb weight gain in the last week which makes a 20 lb weight gain over the last 3 weeks. Now you can see really how uncomfortable she is. There is nothing that can be done for the swelling and unfortunately it’s going to get worse before it gets better. Jen was dilated one today. Here are the results from today’s scan:

Maddie- Heart Rate 144
Weight 5lbs 13 oz

Drew- Heart Rate 133
Weight 5lbs 3 oz

Once again we did not get a real good picture of Drew’s belly because their bellies are touching so Drew could be a little bigger. Sally told us today the bigger the babies get there is more room for the weights to be a little off. Doc says the babies are in the 90th percentile for weight. No ultrasound pictures today they are too squished in there to get good pictures.

The blankets you see below are from Jen and Shawn and Jen made them. Thanks!

PORKY PIG

Sooooooo I now have porky pig feet and ankles. I have to laugh because it looks so funny. I didn't have this with my other pregnancies. I also wasn't pregnant during the hottest month of the year! If I haven't popped by Thursday maybe Dawn can take a picture at our Doctor's Appointment and place it on the blog?
I've been feeling okay just getting BIGGER!!!!!! My belly has been very itchy lately. Any suggestions? I can tell my body is getting ready for the big day. I thought it might be fun to take a poll of what date Drew and Maddie will make their grand entrance into Dawn and Mike's arms. If anyone guesses October, don't leave a comment :)!
Can't wait to hear every one's predictions.

Love, Jen

It's getting close

Today’s doctor appointment went well. Poor Jen is getting bigger and bigger and gained 9 lbs in the last two weeks. She is starting to get swollen feet and ankles and the contractions are starting to pick up which is a little uncomfortable for her. Dr. C told us that Jen has already had more contractions this far in the pregnancy than a woman who has went through labor. Jen is a real trooper! The cervix went from 14 to 11 over the past two weeks. This will be the last cervix check now we are going to weekly appointments and they will now begin to check for dilation. At next weeks appointment they will also check the weight of the babies. I think they are now at the point where their weight slows down because they are twins. Twins slow down now but after they are born they will gain faster then a singleton baby. Jen was excited to be able to go for a little stroll around the block tonight. Below are two ultrasound pictures from the appointment today. Once again we could not get a good picture of Drew so his foot is below and we have a profile of Maddie. The ultrasound pictures are not that great now because they are so packed in there now.

Mike’s office gave him a survival and diaper shower last week. Mike received a backpack (daddy survival kit) with a bunch of needed item: air freshener, latex gloves, mask, ear plugs, wipes, binky’s, a father book, and hand sanitizer. We got boxes and boxes of diapers and a ton of wipes. Thank you to everyone!! We really needed the diapers because we did not get very may at our other shower. Below are some photos of the shower.

Maddie- 143 heart rate
Drew- 136 heat rate

Mike with his survival kit


Mike with the look of surprise


Drews foot in the top of the picture in the middle of the picture


Profile of Madison

Nurseries and lots of pictures

We have been working to get the nurseries ready for Maddie and Drew. I think we are finally done with the exception of cleaning the carpets which I hope to get done this weekend. We are running out of time as we will be 33 weeks this Friday. Sarah and James stayed with us Friday night and painted the pictures for Maddie and Drew’s room which you see in the photos below. They each got to paint one picture for each room and I also painted one for each room. I also painted the paper mache letter you see above the cribs. It really saves a lot of money when you are able to do your own decorations. It was fun getting the nurseries ready and I’m glad I decided to do two nurseries because I like having both a boy and girl theme. There would have been no way I could have done another nursery with two babies if I had only done one then decided I needed two.

Sunday was Cheryl’s birthday so we cooked out at Mom and Dad’s. Jen, Shawn and the kids joined us and below you will see pictures of Jen at 32 weeks and 2 days.

We have a doctors appointment this Thursday so I will update then

QUESTIONS?????????

I felt inspired to write after reading a friends blog regarding questions she gets about her 2 beautiful children. Her website is www.lilyfeifei.blogspot.com

So here are a few of the questions I get.............
"When is your baby due?"
Well they are due in October but it will be sometime in September,and their not mine!"
That usally gets people!
"Oh you have more then one and their not yours?"
That leads to the questions.......
OK.... The number one question I get is" How can you give them up?"
Well I'm not giving them up I'm giving them to their parents.
" Won't it be hard?"
From the very beginning of this journey I had a mind set that their not mine. It's their buns my oven! It will bring me such joy knowing that I was able to help make Dawn and Mike's dream come true.
" Will you see them?"
Yes I will see them since they are related to my sister.
" How could you do this, I couldn't?"
Well, I truly believe the strength comes from above!
Oh a big one" Surrogates get paid pretty well, Are you getting paid?"
Shawn and I are not doing this for money. We do not feel right about putting a price on a life.
However any expenses that come up it would be just like it were Dawn carrying them, And yes they cover that. Also since I have been off work they have compensated me for my lost wages. Which we are very grateful for.
"What do your children think?" "How do you tell them?"
We simply say that Aunt Dawn's belly is sick so the Doctor's put the babies in mommies belly and when they are ready we are giving them back to Aunt Dawn and Uncle Mike. We also have a book called the Kangaroo Pouch that Dawn got for the kids, It's great!
"What does your husband think?"
Come on are you serious, Like I would go through this with out his support!
Shawn has been 100% supportive from the get go. If he was not on board there is no way I could do this. Shawn is in this just as much as I am and he has not complained once. I'm so lucky to have him.
Those are just some of the most frequently asked questions.
To sum things up.... Yes some people are more supportive then others, nicely said!
Shawn and I feel good about our decision.
Thank you again for all the prayers and cards. The babes will be here soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jen

The Weigh In

We are one week away for our next milestone with twins. We will be 32 weeks next Friday. The babies are growing and growing. Today Madison weighed in at a whopping 4.4 lbs and Andrew was 3.8 lbs. Andrew’s measurements were a little hard to get today so he could weigh a little more than we measured today. Jen’s cervix had no change it stayed the same length. The FFN test was negative so this means it’s not likely that labor will take place in the next two weeks. Jen is still on bed rest but is able to do a litte more than just stay in bed. We are all very glad the appointment went so well today. I have to tell you I have been very nervous about the last few appointments but the good news just keeps coming. Thank you all for your prayers they are working.

A little behind

Sorry I have not updated the blog for a while I have been busy putting baby stuff away and writing thank you notes. I have good news about the appointment last week. The cervix did not change it stayed the same length. This means Jen is still on bed rest but at home not in the hospital which is very good. We have another appointment this week and they will do the FFN test again which will tell them if labor might take place in the next two weeks. We will also find out the weight of the babies. I can't wait to find out how big they are now. The babies have been having the hiccups a lot. I read they are practicing their breathing by inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid which causes hiccups. I just wanted to thank everyone again for all the baby gifts.