Twin Facts

Being on bed rest gives me lots of time to think. And sit around. And read. And watch Netflix. So I need things to fill my time! Here is my list of Twin Facts that you may or may not know:

• There are two types of twins, monozygotic, or identical, and dizygotic, fraternal
• Identical twins occur when one egg is released and is fertilized by one sperm. Within the next couple of days the egg splits and becomes two separate individuals who share identical genetic information. 
• Fraternal twins occur when two eggs are released and both are fertilized by different sperm. These twins are genetically the same as any other sibling. 
• Within the group of monozygotic twins are two types, monochorionic-diamniotic (mo-di), which share a placenta but have their own amniotic sacs. A great majority of identical twins are mo-di (mine included). Monoamniotic-monochorionic (mo-mo) twins share a placenta and an amniotic sac and make up about 1% of all identicals. There are a lot of risks associated with mo-mo twins, including umbilical cord entanglement, causing life threatening issues for both babies. Mo-mo twins must be very closely monitored throughout the pregnancy.
• Fraternal twins are the most common type and make up about 2/3 of all twin pregnancies. 
• Fraternal twins can run in families, passed on through the mother's side. It is a myth that twins skip a generation and can be passed through the father's side (supposedly). 
• Identical twins are not genetic (again, supposedly) and occur spontaneously. However, it can't be a coincidence that our girls are the third set of identical girls in three generations in a row in my husband's family. There are also two other sets of twins in his family's history, one possibly identical and the other is unknown since the twin died at birth.
• The least common type of twins are identical boys while the most common is boy/girl fraternal twins
• Some people think it is impossible to nurse twins, but it is more than possible! Nursing is all about supply and demand- the more demand for milk, the more the mother's body will produce. 
• The easiest way to tell the difference between identical twins may be the belly button because it is simply a scar that developed from the detachment of the umbilical cord.
• Identical twins can be mirror twins, developing the same characteristics on opposite sides of their bodies. One may be right handed, the other left handed and they may have moles or birthmarks on opposite sides. It is estimated that 25% of identical twins are mirror images of one another. 
• If identical sisters married identical brothers, their children would be cousins but would genetically be equal to full siblings!
• Women in their 30s and 40s are more likely to conceive twins due to changes in hormones and irregular cycles. This can increase the odds of releasing more than one egg at a time. 
• Tall women and women who are significantly overweight also have greater odds of conceiving twins. It has something to do with hormones, which can be blamed on any number of occurrences within a woman's body. 
• Up to 40% of twins develop their own language when communicating with one another. Check out this super cute video!
• Contrary to popular belief, mothers don't typically feel twins move any earlier than singleton babies. It is most common to feel them move for the first time around 18-20 weeks, especially for first time mothers. Just like with any other pregnancy, mothers who have had previous babies may feel them move sooner because they can recognize the difference between typical gas bubbles and baby movements.
• With the number of risks associated with twins, many are born prematurely
• 37-38 weeks is considered full-term for twins with over 50% of twins being born BEFORE 37 weeks. I am currently 37 weeks and have beat the odds! :-)
• Identical twins do not have identical fingerprints. Fingerprints are formed from experiences in the womb.
• It is more common for twins to be left handed than a singleton. 
• Just after Christmas, Ashley Gardner delivered a beautiful set of quadruplets at 29 weeks gestation. Yes, they were conceived by IVF, but the unique aspect of their story is that they only inserted two eggs. They both split spontaneously, creating two sets of identical twins!! I don't know for sure what the odds of that happening are, but I'm going to say that it is incredibly rare!

Letting Go of Expectations

I didn't know much about childbirth before I got pregnant the first time, but I did know that some day I would like to try a home birth. It sounded like a peaceful and exciting way to welcome a child into the world, but I wanted to experience childbirth in a hospital setting before trying a home birth. So when I ended up going to the hospital when I was 10 days overdue to be induced at midnight (for insurance purposes they said) with my first baby then 12 hours later having a c-section, I was very disappointed! That was not the birth I had envisioned for my son. Yes, I had a beautiful and healthy baby boy and I was so blessed to have him, but I felt like they hadn't taken my preferences into account and it felt like I didn't GIVE birth, but that it was TAKEN from me. They declared him too big to fit through my pelvis and they had their minds made up that he would be cut out rather than wait the 30+ hours for his big head to maneuver its way out, the natural way. Little did they know that three years later I would deliver an even bigger baby naturally with no complications. 

I started researching childbirth and reading books about home birth and my husband and I talked and prayed about what to do with our next baby. We weighed the risks and benefits and decided that a home birth would be the best option for a natural vaginal birth experience. I'll explain more in a future post about our decision to choose to have our babies at home. I want to be clear when I say that home birth was a choice we made for ourselves and I would not push or insist on others having a home birth. It definitely is not for everyone and I fully respect any woman's decision when it comes to something as personal as having a baby. We assumed the risk (which we felt was lower than the risks associated with a repeat c-section) and were rewarded with an incredible birthing experience. 

The birth of our daughter was by far the most defining moment in my life. My husband and I were alone through most of it, walking, writing thank you notes, watching Monk, laughing, then when things got more intense he was reading scripture, praying, and helping me to rely on God's strength, not my own. I felt a much stronger connection to God, my husband, my baby, and my own body. It was beautiful.

So of course when I found out I was expecting another baby, we started planning for a home birth. We settled on a midwife and paid her up front for a discounted rate. But then I found out we were having twins. I was so shocked! There was a time when I thought we may get twins because there were a couple sets in my husband's family but after learning that the gene for twins doesn't pass onto the father, I was relieved. There were no twins in my family so finding out that there were two babies in my tummy was by far the biggest surprise of my life!

After some of the initial shock wore off, I had a conversation with my midwife and we decided that with my history, I should have the twins in the hospital. It would be possible to deliver them naturally at home (and I know of many women who have delivered twins successfully at home), but it would be more complicated and much more risky with my previous c-section. I wasn't 100% comfortable with the idea of having a home birth and if there is one thing you need to be completely comfortable with before attempting, it's home birth! So I asked around for an OB who was knowledgeable in twin birth but would let me have a shot at delivering naturally.

I got many recommendations for a high risk OB who was VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) friendly and went in for a visit. He had 11 kids of his own and was very friendly and easy to talk to. Throughout the pregnancy, he has given me hope that there was a chance for a natural birth, which is more than I can say for any other OBs in this area. Most twins are born by cesarean due to their positions and the complications that can occur in a twin birth. To my doctor, however, the previous c-section didn't have a lot to do with his decision, but more so that the babies are BOTH head down and we are all tolerating labor well. He does not induce VBACs, due to the increased chances of uterine rupture so my only chance at having a natural delivery would be if I went into labor on my own, which at this point is looking to be unlikely. I also seem to have one twin who enjoys doing acrobatics and has flipped into a head up position at 36 weeks after being head down through most of the pregnancy. She is one impressive girl! 

Changing my expectations has been one of the most difficult parts of the pregnancy emotionally. To go from a calm and peaceful home birth with only myself, my supportive husband, and two midwives present in a dark candlelit room, to a bright hospital room full of medical personnel excited  to witness a twin birth could be slightly traumatizing! However, I felt that it was important to let go of certain expectations long ago in this pregnancy. I still held out hope that there was a chance that I could deliver naturally while I prepared my heart for a c-section. As the pregnancy has progressed I have gotten more and more used to the idea that I just need to let go of ALL expectations and simply be thankful for a medical team who can deliver these babies as safely as possible. 

Please keep in mind that while it's important to research and know what to expect in childbirth, it is equally important to remember that when it comes down to it, the safety of you and baby (or babies) is the ideal outcome! Be an advocate for your right to deliver how you want, but prepare your heart for any situation that may arise. I may have been far less disappointed with the birth of my first son if I had let go of some expectations. While I hope that I can have future babies at home, I am no longer disappointed that I don't get to have my twins in the sweet comfort of my own home, and I really am looking forward to giving birth, no matter how it is done!

An Unexpected Hospital Trip

On our way to Will's parents' house to celebrate his thirtieth birthday with family yesterday, I received a phone call from my doctor. He asked how I was doing then said that he was about to ruin my day. He told me that my lab results indicated that I had pre-eclampsia, which has always been a fear with this pregnancy, especially for the past few weeks, but I honestly never thought it would happen to me. So he told me to come to the hospital and check in for monitoring. He said that there was a chance that if the babies and I were stable, I could go home, but there was also a chance that I would be transferred to the other hospital in town that has a NICU where I would stay put until the babies were born. So we continued on to Will's parents' house and after alerting the troops, he opened his birthday presents very quickly, ate a quick helping of his birthday lunch (stroganoff, his favorite) then they sent us off with some birthday cake, keeping the kids for us. We got to the hospital and they hooked me up to monitors with five straps around my belly and a blood pressure cuff that took my pressure every 15 minutes. Baby B did NOT like the tight straps and kept rolling around so the nurse would have to come back in and readjust the monitor. They got me positioned on my left side with a pillow behind me and told me not to move...for three hours! Have you ever tried sitting perfectly still in an uncomfortable hospital bed for three hours when severely pregnant? Not fun! I had to use the restroom and my back and left hip got so sore! After a while, my doctor came back in and said that my blood pressure was excellent and that I could go home. He said that I need to take it easy and be very careful. He ordered me to be on "very limited activity," which is not bed rest but almost! No running errands, no chasing kids around, staying off my feet as much as possible. I go back to see the doctor on Tuesday and we will reevaluate based on my blood pressure. So that is where I am right now.

The night before, we had dropped the kids off with their grandparents and went on a date to celebrate our 6th anniversary. They kept the kids overnight and we are so thankful to have had that time to relax and enjoy one another's company before things really started to get stressful and crazy! God's timing was perfect. :-) We are in the home stretch now, with just three weeks max left to go before we meet our little girls!  Please pray for us as we try to navigate these last few weeks with as little stress as possible so that my pressure will stay low and we can keep these babies in as long as possible!!

34 Week Update!

I've made it to a new milestone in this twin pregnancy! If I were to go into labor naturally at any point from now on, they will not take measures to stop it. Yay! That means that they would be considered healthy enough at this point for it to not be dangerous for them to come into the world. Even if they had to spend a little bit of time in the NICU, they would be quite healthy. I am proud of us for lasting this long!

So I received some good and bad news at my appointment yesterday. The good news is that both babies are measuring 5 lbs even and head down. They have never been more than a couple of ounces apart through the whole pregnancy, which is a very good thing for identical twins! It means that they are getting equal amounts of nutrients from their shared placenta. The doctor was also pleased with my blood sugar numbers and said that we can continue managing with diet only.

Now for the bad news. My blood pressure was high again for the second time in the last two appointments. It wasn't frighteningly high, but just enough to be concerned. The doctor ordered me to be on limited activity but NOT bed rest, praise the Lord! I am supposed to stay off my feet as much as possible but am still allowed to take care of my kids. I am being checked for pre-eclampsia but I am praying that it is just gestational high blood pressure, which isn't as dangerous as pre-e. I go back in a week and if my blood pressure is still high, then we will reconsider the timeline of when the best time for the babies to be born will be. They may come a little earlier than expected.

I am so thankful for family and friends who have come around to help us in so many ways! Right now two of my sisters in-law are downstairs cleaning my house for me. I am horrible about asking people for help and always feel bad but am very thankful for those who read between the lines and come over to help anyway. I better get used to it because I know that we will be needing more help after the babies come! We are learning a good lesson in accepting the kindness and generosity of others. :-)

Christmas Cinnamon Rolls/Mounds

Oysters, cinnamon rolls, fruit salad, and hot chocolate. Sounds quite delicious! That's my husband's family's traditional Christmas breakfast. It doesn't sound much like a breakfast of champions for a diabetic, does it? I guess the oysters would be fine, if they weren't cooked in Bisquick like pancakes. But I don't even like oysters to begin with so I guess there's not a whole lot left for me to enjoy except a little bit of fruit salad. It's times like this when I wish that I could be on medication so that I don't have to worry quite as much about my diet! However, I really want to avoid taking more meds so I had to find an alternative. I scoured the internet for low carb cinnamon roll recipes and finally found a few that I was able to combine to make my very own recipe! I call them: Cinnamon Mounds! I'll explain why later.

I really hate finding recipes online that are about 95% pictures but can understand why people take pictures every step of the way. Some people are more visual learners. But I just want to READ a recipe and ignore all the other junk. However, I feel the need to make this educational and entertaining so I took a few unnecessary pictures. I'm sorry if you are like me and just want to read the recipe.

Irene's Cinnamon Mounds
Ingredients for mounds:
2 cups almond flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 Tbsp baking soda
1 Tbsp baking powder
3 Tbsp flax seed (optional, but more fiber=more health benefits!)
2 eggs
2 Tbsp unsweetened applesauce
1 Tbsp unsweetened almond milk
1 Tbsp honey

 I tried to do one of those cool ingredient pictures you see on every other blog but it didn't turn out that great. I'm just not much of a photographer (or baker).

 Filling:
1 1/2 Tbsp melted butter
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1/4 cup Splenda/sucralose (I used Walmart brand sucralose)

Icing:
3 oz cream cheese
3 Tbsp unsweetened almond milk
1/2 cup splenda

1) Add dry ingredients to medium sized mixing bowl. Add wet ingredients to small bowl and combine. Pour wet mixture into dry mixture and stir.

This is where I think I messed up a little bit. My tablespoons of applesauce turned out to be pretty heaping and I think it made this stuff just too sticky. I read that it would be sticky anyway, but this was beyond the realm of sticky and more like nasty goop (that just happened to smell like cinnamon apples)!

2) Form mixture into a ball and refrigerate at least 20 minutes until harder. I kept mine in all day because I ran out of energy and simply could not get past this point. 

3) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a piece of wax paper with cooking spray (clever, never thought of this before) and press dough flat into a rectangle. I highly suggest using your hands because it is just too sticky for a rolling pin. 

4) For the filling: Combine splenda and cinnamon in small bowl. Brush melted butter onto flattened dough then sprinkle with cinnamon/splenda mixture. 

5) Using a pizza cutter (or knife, or whatever you have), cut 5 strips to roll up into rolls. 

Looks pretty great, right? Oh, you just wait!

6) Begin at one end and roll each strip with the cinnamon/splenda mixture inside. The first strip rolled beautifully. The rest stuck to the paper and my fingers like nothing else! I tried squeezing the cracks together but that just broke the dough apart more and made it stick even more to my fingers. These made gigantic rolls/mounds so I cut them in half and glooped them in a greased baking dish. 

I was sad and I must admit, the evil pregnancy hormones reared their ugly heads and made me cry a tiny bit. Every past baking failure came flooding back into my head. But I quickly realized that the way they look will not affect how they taste and I was just fine!

7) Place in oven and bake for 25 minutes. They will be browned along the edges and on the top. 

8) Icing: Using an electric mixer, mix cream cheese and milk until well combined. It will be a little runny. Add splenda and continue mixing until smooth. Spoon over cinnamon rolls after they come out of the oven. 

They don't look too bad covered in icing!

It tasted pretty good but left that typical sucralose after-taste in my mouth.

Overall, I think these are good as long as I call them cinnamon mounds. Adjusting expectations can often help you view things differently! As long as I don't expect this to be just like a cinnamon roll, I can be happy and enjoy my mound. :-) 

Another Food Post

I feel like all I write about or think about lately is food. It will be so nice to go back to eating almost anything after the babies are born! I'm going to educate you a little bit in the diet of a diabetic. You see, one slice of bread, whether it be whole wheat or white, has around 15 grams of carbohydrates, which is considered 1 serving. That means that having a sandwich gives me about 30 grams of carbs (or 2 servings) plus whatever else may be in the sandwich and all of the sudden I have just eaten about half of the carbs that I am allowed for the day (that's a SLIGHT exaggeration). But I am really excited about these wraps that I found at Kroger the other day.

I think they're technically flour tortillas but I am just going to use them for making wraps. One tortilla has 14 g of carbs, 9 g of fiber, and 5 g of protein. Anything that is high in fiber (above 5 g) kind of cancels out some of the carbs because high fiber foods are digested more slowly, so it's kind of like each tortilla is only 5 g of carbs (kind of)! Plus anytime you have carbs, you should be eating protein as well. The way I understand it, protein somehow helps the carbohydrates absorb slower into the blood stream. At least I think, someone please correct me if I am wrong. And I'm supposed to be eating somewhere around 100 grams of protein a day so I love finding things that have a little hidden protein in them. So anyway, today I had tuna with light mayo on a wrap with low fat mozzarella cheese and fresh spinach. I couldn't really tell the difference between this wrap and others that I have tasted even though it is SUPER healthy. This was exactly the kind of lunch that I need every now and then to be reminded that being a diabetic for the moment really isn't all that bad. The only problem I see with these wraps is that they cost a lot more than I really want to pay. So even though I want to eat them every day, I will have to use them sparingly. HOWEVER, I love knowing that there is GOOD food out there that I can eat guilt free. 

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! It is now 2015. I can't believe how fast time seems to move these days. This is the year that my husband and I will turn 30. It's odd to think of myself as a near 30 year old because I still feel like a young lady. In my youth, a 30 year old was someone who had their life together and was, well, old! And now that I'm almost 30, it doesn't seem very old to me at all!

More importantly, however, is that this is the year our twins will be born. We will be seeing their sweet faces in no more than a month and that is incredible!! My only goals are for these babies to stay put as long as possible and for our family to make it through this year alive and well. That's not too much to ask for, right? ;-)

So please pray for us as we step into what will be the biggest year of our lives! It's going to be a crazy one and I am so excited!