Monday, March 8, 2010

118/75

That was my BP reading today...yippee!! My doctor said "well it appears rest agrees with you".

Indeed Dr.K, indeed.

So we now have an appointment for next Monday to check things out again. I have the same orders to avoid all forms of stress and rest as much as possible, and of course call her if my water breaks or if I have certain symptoms.

We are so happy to have had a "healthy" check up, and grateful it's looking like we will get to our coveted 36 week mark!!

It was a truly surreal this morning to be packing up heading to our doctors. We put the hospital "go bag" in the trunk just in case my BP was super high and she said I needed to be induced this morning. We both were talking last night about how we are as ready as we are ever gonna be...because I mean really, can you ever be FULLY ready to bring babies home?!?

We are both getting so excited to meet these wee ones. David I think even more than me. I am going to be a little sad when this pregnancy is over, it's been so much fun and as much as I can't wait to hold them and kiss them and whisper sweet things in their ears, I think I am going to miss them bumping around inside of me. I love to just sit in our bed at night and watch them play inside my giant belly. I was explaining that to David and said "aren't you going to miss that too?" and he said yes, but for him it's been like staring at a Christmas gift for months. He has "shaken" it and he knows what's inside, and he is so ready to "open it and play!" =).



I had a (very polite) question on my last post about how I intend to keep up with nursing twins, and the answer is....prayer, determination, and the grace of God!!

I honestly am nervous about this. Probably more nervous about breastfeeding than labor!
I just worry about my ability and stamina to meet their constant needs. I so want to breastfeed them exclusively for the first couple months.

I have read books and taken a class on breastfeeding multiples (where we even practiced) and I do not have unrealistic expectations of it being easy. I know it will be very difficult to keep up with TWO babies. Especially if they are small and it is recommended we feed every 2 hours to get their weight up, which is a very likely scenario.

It's something I pray about often, and am hopeful the Lord will grant me the ability and grace to do it.

Also, any advice you all have is welcome! Especially if you have twins =)

Alright...off to take my afternoon nap.

Happy Monday all.



10 comments:

Jen S. said...

Kendra... I'm just so happy that all is going good. I think of you so often, and always keep you in my prayers :)
Sounds like you are resting and taking it easy....good for you!
Hugs to you!

Heather said...

Hey girl!!! I KNOW you can do the breastfeeding thing...and you will be so thankful and happy that you did. It is a wonderful and special time and experience for a Mommy, in my opinion! My friend that has twins is still nursing them and they are 7 months old!!! It will be hard at first (because it's a little hard no matter what...and you will have two) because it is TIME CONSUMING. If they eat every two hours, you will be a non-stop feeding machine!!! But you are supposed to be resting anyway....so just pop in some DVD's ("Friends?!?!" or a movie or two and hang out. Eventually it will spread out and you will feel like you have more time. But that was my biggest struggle at first...just feeling like by the time one feeding was over...the next one was about to start...and I wanted to shower!!! :)
One more thing...if the babies ARE small, they may want you to supplement with formula (my friend had to--and I even had to once or twice with Connor) and that does NOT mean that you are not going to be successful breastfeeding. It just helps them to gain weight at first, when it is so critical, then they can be nursed-only.

Sorry for the long comment....but wanted to share some encouragement. I hope you already know this....but feel free to e-mail me with ANYTHING or ANY QUESTIONS you might have about this or anything baby. I may not know, but I can offer my encouragement and suggestions.

I am getting SO excited for you guys!!!! Praising God for this gift! Love you!

Lori said...

YAY! I am so happy to see those great numbers! I am sure you were thrilled with those results.

I can imagine that it is sad thinking about your pregnancy coming to an end when you have waited so long for it. I'm sure you will not look back once you have those tow little miracles snuggled up to you!!

I will be praying for you as you begin this journey into mommyhood to twins! Especially with the breastfeeding!

The Writer Chic said...

I'm so happy for a good report. I have been thinking about you all day.

Amy said...

Kendra,
If you invest in a good pump, you can let someone else feed one of them breast milk while you feed the other. Same liquid, different faucet!
Good luck! You're going to be such an amazing mother! I've been following your blog for a while and you always make me smile.
Amy

Emily said...

Never thought to mention it before, but a friend of mine from church growing up has twin boys who turned one in December. Here's her blog, and I'm fairly positive she nursed at least for the first while. :)

http://www.kimberleeo.blogspot.com/

Vanessa's Dad said...

Nursing aid? One word... "beer"



(This from a non-nursing, non-twin parent, non-female... a person who appreciates all things in moderation... including the many benefits of beer... socially, physically, psychological, maybe even spiritually... scientifically proven to help nursing mothers... it's all natural, and you might even be able to get local home brew from Grand Dad Bruce. It takes a whole village to raise twins.)

LOVE,
GRAND DAD 2B

Sarah said...

Kendra, in your soon-to-be-scarce free time, check out www.karengromada.com. She's kind of the guru for breastfeeding twins. Lots of good info and links on her website.

I don't think they stress this enough in the hospital, but one of the most important things you can do to get your milk supply established is to breastfeed really *really* frequently in those first few days. Like literally every 2 hours from the time they're born. Some research shows that skipping out on early feeds in the first 24-48 hrs (for example by substituting formula) can make it more difficult to bring in a full milk supply. So just nurse nurse nurse away!

You can do it. I had a very rough time nursing my second son (gave up with my first and pumped exclusively for him, with a great supply, until he was 13 months old) but I'm SO glad I stuck with it with #2 as he's still a snuggly little nursling now at age 2.

Seriously feel free to holler if you need any long-distance help on the nursing angle. I've seriously become way too educated on lactation issues. :)

kriswalls said...

YEAH for low BP! And YEAH for 35 weeks!

Good luck breastfeeding; it certainly isn't for the faint of heart. There are times it hurts and it's completely uncomfortable, then eventually you go numb! ;) hehehe- I wish I could say I was just joking, but really you will be happy when you have lost all feeling- in that spot at least. It is a commitment. There are going to be times you want to give up; but if it's what you really want stick it out. It is a special time and I pray you can do it. I only nursed my twins a few times because they were so tiny and they needed extra calories and rice cereal added to their milk (the cereal was for their reflux), I was able to pump for them for 6 weeks. It was worth it, but hard. I did get to nurse my 3rd. since she was a singleton and only 3 weeks early she did great. I just wished I had stuck it out more than 6 months. I was so tired and she nursed all the time. Nothing has changed really; that little girl can eat!

Good luck! I am so excited for you! I can't wait for you to be able to hold those sweet little babies! There truly is nothing greater.

Becca said...

Hi Kendra! I just dropped by your blog to check on you and am delighted that the pregnancy has gone so well and that you are so close to meeting your little ones! My boy/girl twins (Andrew and Sophia) were born at the end of December and the past 10 weeks have been the most exhausting and the most joyous of my life! :) I am so excited for you and your hubby and all that you are about to experience!

I thought I'd chime in on the breastfeeding question, since I was also very nervous about breastfeeding twins before they arrived. It certainly hasn't been easy, but it's definitely doable. I would suggest purchasing an "EZ 2 Nurse Twin Pillow" if you don't already have one - it's the only way I can feed both of them at the same time. But that said, I didn't even try feeding them together for the first 6 weeks or so until after they had each separately gotten the hang of latching on, etc. They both had some trouble in those early weeks, so I had a lactation consultant come to our home at one point (very helpful!) and pumped faithfully in between feedings to maintain my milk supply even when they weren't eating well. They're 10 weeks old now and going strong...

God bless!