32 Weeks

We are SO excited to have acheived our 2nd to last milestone in this pregnancy!!  Throughout this whole pregnancy, Trae, myself and our Doctors have given ourselves mini milestones to acheive along the way that keep our eye on the prize and our head in the game.  First milestone was obviously 12 weeks, then 24 weeks, 28 weeks, 32 weeks and finally 36 weeks.
Our Perinatologist, Dr Berry gives actual "awards" at 28, 32 and 36 weeks:

28 Weeks = a solid Bronze Coin

32 Weeks= a full ounce Silver Bar 

36 Weeks= a solid Gold Coin. 

 Receiving our Broze & Silver awards were SO exciting as these acheivements once seemed SO far-fetched.  Now, we have our eye on the GOLD prize that we will acheive in 4 short weeks!  Getting to 36 Weeks would mean no NICU time for our sweet girls, probably a scheduled C-Section and healthy, big babies.. in addition to our fancy gold award from Dr Berry.

This week marked the start of our REAL "nesting".  With Trae's help and "Nana Sharon" we have organized our nursery to give all the girls new clothes a spot, and started arranging things by need, giving us accessibility to all the items we'll be needing between birth-3 months first and other items close by after. Having the opportunity to have twins again has been such a dream, but it comes with a lot of needs that take up a lot of room!! Staying organized has to be a priority and I'm so grateful to have a head start on this.

We also installed the girls' car seats in my car, which was so fun. I officially have car seats in my car, all ready to go!!! We will continue practicing with the seats off an on for the next few weeks so we don't accidentally jerk our newborns due to not knowing how to properly install their carseats.
We got a few fun items monogrammed with the girls' names and bought a new pink Vera Bradley bag to be used as the girls hospital bag and then later to be used as a large diaper bag for long days or short weekend trips with the girls.

How Far Along? 32w6d
Stretch Marks? NO!!!
Sleep?  The girls have been moving a lot at night, which makes staying asleep challenging, but I just love feeling my sweet girls moving about in my belly. I know I will miss this feeling. My hips and back ache throughout the night so I have to switch sides constantly to keep comfortable. I like to think its God's way of prepping my body for nightly feedings.
Best Moment of the Week? Seeing the girls at Dr Berry's appointment was the best! They are healthy, happy and it eases our mind and hearts to know that our babies are doing so well. We immediately went out and monogrammed some onesies with their names on them to surprise all their grandparents with their names after they're born.
Movement? Constant!! Baby B still moves much less than her sister, but these girls move constantly!!
Food Cravings? Iced Tea, Fruit Juice, Scrambled Eggs, Fish Tacos, Greek Salad.
Genders? Girls
Symptoms: I am tired almost all the time these days! Walking in general hurts my back and legs pretty badly. I try to explain the feeling to Trae and friends as it feels like I have done hundreds of squats the day before and my inner legs & back are SO sore from the workout.. that's the closest thing I remember this constant pain while walking feeling like. Also, the pregnancy "waddle" has come and gone this pregnancy, but walking has been FULL WADDLE for at least 4 weeks now.
Weekly Dr Appt: Our Appt with Dr Berry was so great. We received our Silver Award for achieving 32 weeks and did our first biophysical exam that we will be now doing weekly until we meet our girls. The exam is done via sonogram & watches for the girls to make 3 movements in 30 minutes, practice their breathing, measures their growth and fluid levels.  Our babies passed their first exam in the first 5 minutes!!  Both girls were consistently practicing their breathing, had plenty of amniotic fluid, moved consistently & often (yawning, sucking thier fingers and moving their long legs) and both girls measured over 4 lbs! Baby A measured 4 lbs 9 oz and Baby B measured 4 lbs 5 oz.

We also had an appt with Dr Reue this week, which went well. He confirmed that my cervix is long and unchanged and he isn't concerned with the braxton hicks that I continue to have. Dr Reue and Dr Berry both reiterate that at this point the babies are just packing on the pounds & maturing their lungs while Mama manages her discomfort.  I consider 5 more weeks of discomfort to be a small price to pay for these growing girls long term health. :)

31 Weeks

How Far Along? 31wks6days
Stretch Marks? Amazingly, NO!!
Sleep? Thankfully, I am still able to sleep through the night with only a few potty breaks & repositioning breaks with the help of 4 pillows & a helpful husband who helps me get in and out of bed. :)
Best Moment of the Week? Our couples shower was the best part of the week, for sure! It was so amazing to celebrate our little girls with all our friends & family by our sides.  We feel so loved & grateful.
Movement? These girls like to move all throughout the day, but mostly at night. They are getting much stronger- many of their jabs shake my whole belly at night while resting!
Food Cravings? Iced Tea, Breakfast Tacos
Genders? Girls
Symptoms? At this rate, these girls are growing quickly and my body is working into overdrive trying to keep up! Walking is full "waddle" now due to my legs & back hurting so much. I find myself to be fully exhausted by 8-9 at night and needing to rest or go to bed. I wake up with numb fingers every morning, which the Dr tells me is very common due to babies' positions.  I am still having pretty consistent Braxton Hicks contractions. I take procardia every day to offset them but still have to take Benadryl sometimes to help calm down my uterus. We'll see what Dr's say next week about them coming for frequently.
Weekly Dr Appt: We had no Dr Appt this week due to the babies doing so well the week before!

Addison & Jack listening to Aunt Cyndi's belly trying to hear their cousins sleeping.

30 Weeks

How Far Along? 30wks6days
Stretch Marks? No!
Sleep? We are making it work.. lots of pillows, not a lot of consecutive hours, but none the less I'm getting some. Benadryl helps. Naps during the day do not help.
Best Moment of the Week? Best moment of the week was scheduling our C-Section!
Movement? Baby A likes to kick, turn, hiccup all day long while Baby B just rolls into a little ball, which ends up making my whole belly look lopsided. I wonder if Baby B will be a snuggler later because of her few movements.. it's nice to think about.
Food Cravings? Iced Tea, Coffee, Eggs
Genders? 2 Girls
Symptoms: Very sore legs & back. I'm also very low on energy throughout the day.
Weekly Dr Appt: Our 30wk appointment with Dr Reue went well- so well that he didn't think he needed to see us until 32 weeks! We discussed what to expect from our C-Section delivery and then we scheduled our ACTUAL C-Section date!! Our goal date and current C-Section date is 2/27/14. I would be 37wks+2days- more than full term for twins!  While that might be a long shot and the girls might be ready to come before then, it feels good to have a goal date & we are going to keep aiming for it!

Girls Baby Shower

Saturday, January 4th was my first baby shower, hosted by my sweet girlfriends Liz, Heather Greeson, Brooke Stacey, Lindsay & Charlene.

The party was absolutely perfect- a low key, girly event catered by my favorite Austin Tea Shop: The Steeping Room complete with 3 different flavors of tea, tea sandwhiches, veggies & hummus and lavendar tea cake.  So Chic!

We talked about my pregnancy and the girls in my GROWING baby belly, showed their 4D photos, giggled about life to come & what Trae and I learned in our "Breastfeeding for Multiples" Class and all that we still had to learn! We received so many lovely gifts for our sweet twin girls that we can hardly wait to use in 2(ish) months!

I am so grateful to have such amazing family and friends who love us so much and are supporting our journey to parenthood.

Sara, Nana Schultz, Lynn, Aunt Carrie & Nana Young

Lindsay, Heidi & Liz 

Adorable gifts from Nana

Proud Papa and Mama

My Sweet Lindsay. She is a true soul and a great mama friend to look up to!

My Aunt Terri made this amazing quilt for the girls- so special and beautiful.

We'll need lots of these!! Thank you, Aunt Liz!

Mom can almost hide behind the girls!

My Sign In Sheet asking guests to "leaf" their thumbprint as thier name. We will hang in the nursery.

My mom and I so happy to be celebrating

Our dainty spread with cake pops & crafts made by Lindsay & her son, Jack!  Gorgeous!

My sweet Ashley who works at March of Dimes with me & loves all my babies every day!

Auntie Brooke Stacey and her million dollar smile

My special "Greeson". She and I hold a special bond forever.

The day was amazing. I had been looking forward to this day for so long and it was everything I could have asked for.  All the excitement tired this momma-to-be out so much that after Mom & Trae unloaded our cars full of our amazing gifts, the girls & I relaxed in our new recliner  and I had an amazing nap with my puppies by my side.
A great day all together!

29 Weeks

Happy 2014!

This week we celebrated a new week and a NEW YEAR! 

Although our New Years Eve celebration was low key this year with PF Changs Take Out & me falling asleep on the couch before midnight, it certainly doesn't mean we're not excited with all that 2014 brings us.  Trae and I couldn't be more excited at bringing home our little girls and teaching them all about their big brothers from the moment we meet them.

My NYE fortune cookie fortune. Could it be talking about the girls?!?!

One exciting moment that New Years Eve brought was a 4D sonogram at our little girls at our Dr's office. I had no Dr appointment this week due to the holidays, so we scheduled the sonogram so we could make sure to see them this week. Both babies are still breech, heads by my ribs, snuggled up to one another. Baby A is facing my spine as she has been for weeks while Baby B was lying sideways right next to her sister.  Because Baby A, our little ninja baby was facing my back, we didn't get any pictures of her face, but we were able to get a lot of great photos of Baby B, which was amazing. 

Trae and I think she already looks a lot like Trae, with his nose & face shape.. which will likely mean she will favor her brother, Sawyer who also looked like his Daddy.


How Far Along? 29wks6days
Stretch Marks? Nope!
Sleep? Some night are amazing- I had one night of 9+ hours sleep and felt AMAZING the next day! Other nights I'm tossing and turning until 5 AM. I will say that lots of pillows and NO day naps are key to a full nights sleep for me
Best Moment of the week?  This week brought so many amazing moments, it's hard to pick just one. While seeing my babies in full mode was so amazing and another amazing milestone, The best moment of my week has to be my Girls Baby Shower on Saturday. Celebrating these little girls with my family and friends while remembering and celebrating my sweet boys was an amazing moment that I had dreamed about and never thought would happen. It was amazing and surreal and so appreciated.
Movement? Rolls and jabs are becoming much more distinct & visible - even from the outside! It's a lovely feeling, even at 3 AM when I'm woken up by my girls dancing. It's a feeling I know I'll miss.
Food Cravings? Iced Tea, Spicy Foods, Green Juices.
Genders? Sweet Baby Girls
Symptoms: My belly gets very tight from all their movement sometimes and short activities gets Mommy very sleepy. My body is adjusting well, I just have to rest often!
Weekly Dr Appointment: No appointment this week- just our 4D sonogram.

28 Weeks

Our 28th week was a great one. We celebrated officially being in our 3rd trimester (a first for us), and we were able to celebrate Christmas with both sets of our parents with lots of love surrounding us and all our 4 of our children.

Normally Trae and I are busy traveling between my parents house in San Antonio and his parents house in Glen Rose over the holidays so we can see all our family, but this year we decided to play it safe and have all our family drive to us. Christmas Eve my parents drove in, we cooked dinner at the house and attended a beautiful Christams Eve service at St. Martins Lutheran Church.  Our church is part of our family- we have many close friends that attend, Pastor Pete, the senior pastor was a huge support system when the boys were born and subsequently passed away, and our own sons, Sawyer & Tristan are buried in the columnbarium in the chapel there. We love our church and plan to be lifelong members as we feel very close to our boys everytime we are there, so it was special to attend thier beautiful Christmas Eve service with our boys close.

Christmas Day we opened gifts at my brother and sister in laws house in Austin with my parents and relaxed before my parents drove home. Trae and I went to watch a movie together that evening and discussed how different next Christmas will be with 2 little girls with us.

A few days later, Trae's parents: Sharon & Milton and his sister, Carrie and her family came into town where we all went out to dinner, played card games where I reclaimed my winning title at "Left, Right, Center" for the 2nd year in a row and we all opened gifts.

Trae and I looked back fondly at last years Christmas where we were surprising our families with the news that Sawyer & Tristan were boys. We miss our sons terribly but felt their presence around us all week as we all talked and prayed about them daily. 

How Far Along? 28w6days

Stretch Marks?  Nope!

Sleep? This week sleep has been my only complaint, other than my inability to take off my boots anymore since I can't lean over. Baby A is now breech/transverse so she is feet down with her head in my right side. Its the most bizzare thing- my belly is literally wide because of the way she is laying. Baby B is balled up, also feet down/head up with her head right under my rib cage. When I lay flat on the bed A falls further right which is VERY uncomfortable and B travels further into my ribs which is also painful. Sleep has come with lots of tossing, turning, groaning and experimenting with lots of pillows.  We finally went and purchased a recliner we plan to use in the nursery when the girls are here but for me to sleep in for the next 8 weeks. Can't wait for it to get here!!

Best Moment of the Week? Spending Christmas with both sets of our parents & remembering our boys in different ways with all our family.

Movement? These girls move a lot at night, probably because their used to their mama moving around all day still. The kicks and jabs are getting harder every day and with 4 little legs/feet on my bladder I worry what's to come!

Food Cravings? Spicy food sounds good to me all the time. 

Genders? All Girls!

Symptoms: Sore legs & hips due to my belly growing and poor sleep are my only real complaints. 

Weekly Dr Appt: This week was started by seeing Dr Berry, our MFM where he gave us a 1929 Bronze Coin for achieving our first major goal of making it to 28 weeks! He gives awards for every milestone we reach: 28 weeks (Bronze), 32 weeks (Silver), 36 weeks (Gold).  We are going for the GOLD!!

It was at this appointment we learned that both babies were breech and very long. They were measuring over a week ahead in length and several days ahead in weight. Baby A weighed 2lbs 10 oz and Baby B weighed 2lbs 11 oz.  We were so pleased to hear both girls are growing so well and seem to very very content inside.  We don't see Dr Berry again until 32 weeks, but we will then see him weekly until the end of our pregnancy.

Our new recliner!

Blue Bear ornaments for our Sawyer & Tristan

New ornaments for our girls, located right next to their brothers ornaments

Trae parking my shopping cart I use at Home Depot- he can parallel park even a shopping cart well!

Baby Registry

Thank you to everyone who is sharing in our excitment on our pregnancy. We look back at 2013 in awe of all the blessings we were given & heartache our family has endured.

We look forward to keeping you all up to date on all the fun things we're doing to celebrate these 2 little girls joining our family including 2 baby showers coming up in January, and the evolving nursery that will incorporate all 4 of our children into it.

For those who are interested, we have 3 baby registeries:

www.myregistry.com

www.amazon.com

www.buybuybaby.com 


We hope you all have a lovely, relaxing holiday break. 

Happy Holidays,

The Schultzes