Welcome to week 33

Week 33 is here, and I am excited to be another week closer to having Nolan and Corra with us!  Our ultrasound showed us 2 heathy babies!  Corra is out weighing Nolan by 4 ounces and if she keeps that up we will have to have a C section.  She is weighing in at 4 lbs 2 oz, and still breech. He is 3 lbs 14 oz. and ready to go! That puts Corra right at the 50th percentile and Nolan at the 25th.  Prior to today they have been measuring in the 90th percentile so the Dr. is concerned that I may not be able to give them space to grow too much longer.  I am hoping to make it at least 2 more weeks but ready to beg to have them out in 4!  haha!  Nolan was dancing around in there for a good live showing, while Corra was her calm little self.   My stomach is right around 39.5 inches around at the belly button, and my uterus is at 40 weeks in fundal height. That measurement standard is for 1 baby.  So I have 8 lbs and 36 inches of baby in my stomach!  That is a lot of space occupied.  Im up 19 lbs from my pre pregnancy weight.  While sleep has been hard to come by, and my stomach and pelvis are achy,  I am happy they are both healthy and growing!  

week 32

Ryan and I were excited to celebrate our 1 year anniversary this past weekend!  We had Kelsey's bridal shower in the early part of the day and it was a lot of fun!  She looked stunning and we are so excited to watch her become Mrs. Nelson in less than 3 months!  

Celebrating Kelsey!!

Later in the evening we celebrated at Michael and Cara's wedding.  It was a beautiful venue and we had a ton of fun with friends. 

Happy 1 year Ry!!

I only have one dress that fits so I hope you all enjoy the green and white tie dye look! haha!  I was super tired the next day so we spent a lazy day together!  

Who would have thought only a year later we would be expecting not only our first kid, but also our second!  I remind Nolan and Corra that as soon as they are ready to breathe on their own, we are ready for them to be here!  So until then it is baby updates and dreams of running again! Week 33 here we go!

Plugging Through Week 32.

Since my last post I have been eating a lot more, and would you believe it?  I am less irritable!  I began taking in nearly double the calories and low and behold my blood glucose got out of hand.  My Dr. prescribed 2.5 mg of Glyburide and once weekly non stress tests to see that the little ones aren't having any trouble.    I am still at 18 pounds over my pre-preganacy weight, but I have a lot more energy.  Having a lot more energy sorta made me anxious to get back to running.  So I have been getting out the door for a brisk mile-1.5 mile walk.  This has made me feel significantly better mentally!  Which no doubt makes the little ones happier!
I went today for my non stress test and they couldn't find Corra's heartbeat.  I have to say I was a little panicked for about 30 minutes until they got me into the ultrasound room.  No worries, she was just hiding!  Both Nolan and Corra are doing fine and both had heartbeats at 138!

Ashley and I

My Cousinsister came into town this past week and I was able to spend a few days with her for the first time in 2 years!!  I loved getting to hangout and get caught up on all that is going on in her life!  She just moved back to the USA from South Korea and spending time with her was AMAZING!! 

Ry and I 

We were able to spend time with the whole family welcoming Ash and Chris (her husband) home!

"Hanging" In There

My stomach is nearly 40 inches around as the twins reach 4 lbs and 18 inches each.  I am struggling to breathe, and it makes sleeping my biggest challenge on any given day! However, my blood glucose levels have been great, and I am happy that they are growing and doing so well!

Care Package for Me!

Care Package for the Babies

My incredible Cleveland Elite Development teammates stopped by last night with a care package of wonderful food for me to eat and some great stuff for Nolan and Corra's arrival! Thank you so much ladies!  You are wonderful and really know how to make a girl feel loved! 

Nolan 

Nolan made an appearance today during the ultrasound.  Kinda weird/kinda cute, my sister says this is plain creepy! haha!  The picture is his little face with his hands up like he is pretending to be a bunny!  He is already a little ham! 

I can not wait to actually meet them.  My Dr. says he highly doubts I will make it this long, but if all goes well he may not induce labor until mid July!  Ugg 7 more weeks seems like an eternity!  But having healthy babies is the goal.  I would be equally miserable knowing they were struggling in the NICU as I would be just hanging in there and giving them more time to grow.  

So cheers to the next maybe 7 weeks!  I see the Dr. again next week to see how growth is coming and how they are handling everything.  Pray July gets here quick for me!

30 weeks done!

Nolan and Corra's due date is finally feeling like it is getting close!  I can hardly wait to meet them!  

Ryan and I have everything pretty much in place.  We have done some little fix ups around the house to feel more settled and ready for our kidos to come home for the first time! 

Things have been pretty tough for me. My gestational diabetes is a bit out of control, and so in order to keep my blood sugar levels stable I was only able to eat a little over 1000 calories a day.  My Dr. told me this past week to eat more like 1500-2000 calories, and to see where the blood sugar levels fall.  I struggle with doing this because I know having high levels of sugar in my blood hurt Nolan and Corra.  I am doing the best I can and trying not to feel frustrated, and worried.  I go back to the Dr. with the new data on Wednesday and we will see from there where things go.

Since my last post I have lost 5 lbs and I am up to 17 lbs over my pre pregnancy weight.  My big ol belly keeps growing and is now 38.5 inches around at my belly button.  As of last week I was measuring 38 weeks in fundal height, which is based off of only one baby not two.  So if I were having only one kid I would be very close to popping! All of you moms out there know I feel big, heavy and quite achy.  Aside from the gestational diabetes I have some nerve pain that shoots up my back and down my left arm.  Not really too bad though, I know it is only temporary and I thank God it isn't down my legs!  

I try not to complain, but I have been quite irritable lately.  I really miss feeling good, and it is pretty hard for me to feel tired, and in pain daily.  Luckily I have been getting outside and getting in a walk almost everyday, which keeps me feeling like I am doing something.  The babies are about 3 pounds each now, and I feel them moving constantly.  It is mind easing to know they are moving in there and growing.  When I get frustrated with not running, dealing with gestational diabetes, the constant aches, and PUPPS(an itchy rash thought to be caused my pregnancy hormones) I remind myself how lucky I am to not be on bed rest, and to have 2 little ones still growing! 

As the time grows closer to me being able to run again, I have been trying to wrap my mind around getting back to running and what it will look like.  I feel that I am in for a rude awakening when I realize just how out of shape I am!  haha!  It will be a fun process to see what starting over entails! Nolan and Corra have about 6 more weeks until its go time unless they decide otherwise earlier.  I was born this week in my mom's pregnancy and that gives me some more peace of mind.  

On to week 31 we go!  Im getting eager to meet the little ones! 

Nolan and Corra!

A day later than promised, but I was soooo tired yesterday!  We are excited to announce we are having 1 boy and 1 girl!  We can not wait to meet Nolan and Corra!

We had a great time celebrating with friends and family yesterday and here are some photos of our showers!

Cathy, Diane, Meredith, Me, and Haley

Brandi and Morgy

My Family!

My Columbus Shower!  Thanks Carly!

There are actually 7 people in this pic! Carly, little Robertson Baby, Me, the twins, Mom S. and Kelsey! 

Tired Ryan and I after the shower!

Spellman side of the family Dad, Ry, Me, Mom, and Grandma Maty.

GO ZIPS 8 former Zips and 1 current!

A sleepy Peg after a long day of people around!

On to the 3rd Trimester. Recap of Month 6 of Pregnancy!

Im back with a blog post, and baby bump update!  Things have become a little more challenging since I last posted. Actually I really didn't have much good to say and I didn't want this blog to be my never-ending complaint.  This pregnancy has been far from difficult to this point, so I really should not complain.  I have two little ones in there that are about 15 inches long and weigh nearly 2 and 1/4 pounds at this point!  They are getting huge and so is my belly!  haha!  I have put on 20 pounds and my belly is 38 inches around these days! The little ones have functioning lungs and if they were born at this point would have a great chance of making it!  That makes me breathe a little easier! Don't be fooled, breathing is far from easy right now!

Week 26

Week 27

Week 28

Last week I went to the dr. office to take my 1 hour blood glucose test. After a week without hearing from them, I thought I had passed.  But 7 days later they called to say the levels were elevated and I had to do the 3 hour test.  I went on Wednesday to take the 3 hour test and about 20 mins after drinking the 100 gram sugar syrup I felt sick.  I started sweating, felling like I was going to pass out and throw up.  I spoke up and asked for help afraid this may be a bad side effect.  They gave me a place to lay down between blood draws.  I received a call this morning from the Dr. office and I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes.  For now that really means that I have to watch what I eat and cut out complex carbs, sweets, and keep up my protein and vegetables! Gestational Diabetes is not a lack of insulin production.  It is due to a pregnancy hormone that inhibits the use of insulin to break down sugars normally.  So it is significantly more common in pregnancies with multiples because there are more hormones.  I was bummed out about it at first, but then realized that this was something I could handle and not worth being upset over.  If I can control it with diet, no insulin injections will be needed so I will do my best!

I have had some great things happen in the past 2 weeks! I was thrown 2 ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL showers thanks to friends and family!  The generosity is completely overwhelming!  We went to Columbus and spent time with Ryan's family to celebrate the soon to be here twins.   This shower was complete with an abundance of laughter, amazing gifts, and twin fruit babies!  Thank you so much Mom Spell, Carly, and Kelsey for throwing us such a thoughtful shower!  I can't wait to give some back to Kelsey this summer while celebrating her wedding, and this fall to Carly, while celebrating her bun in the oven!

Twin Fruit Babies!

Mom came to Columbus to Celebrate With Us!

Then last week the group of ladies I run with had a shower for me and pitched in to get us the double BOB jogging stroller we wanted.  I was overwhelmed once again by the generosity!  They prepared a Mexican style lunch for me and it was great!  I loved getting to spend some time with them!  Thank you so much ladies!  

At the Shower with my incredible hosts, Heidi and Nicole!

Aubrey and I at the shower.

CED/NEO Ladies Celebrating!

Finally last weekend ended with a bit of a sad/exciting tone to it as we had a going away party for someone I love very much.  Nicole is heading to Boulder in a couple weeks to pursue getting even faster and to live a life very much involved around running!  She is joining Hudson's Training group out there, and we will miss her dearly here.  We met at Bottle House Brewery in Cleveland Heights, and enjoyed some food, drinks (don't worry, just water for me), laughter, and pinball to send Nicole off with a smile!  We love you Nicole and I can not wait to visit Boulder!

I Love You Nicole!

Looking back, even if I am uncomfortable and have to tip toe around my food decisions, I have to say I am still the luckies girl on earth!  I am glad to be in the 3rd trimester and on my way to having to deal with raising some kids!

Check back Sunday for the babies names and genders!  We can't wait to tell everyone!

Weekly Update. Week 24 Is Done!

Another week has passed by quickly!  So hard to believe! Week 24 is now behind us!  The kids are really starting to take up space and from all that I read are pretty much little people at this point.  They just need to get those lungs working and fatten up before they are ready to take in some oxygen and start drinking their way through everyday!

The babies are each about 13.5 inches long and weigh about 1.5 lbs.   That is 3 pounds and 27 inches of baby shoved into a pretty snug little area.  While I feel huge, I know it has only just begun! I have a little bit of anxiety about how much stretching my stomach can take and about ending up with postpartum diastasis (torn abdominal muscles), but I am trying not to let myself worry about the 40 million things I can not control.

growing every week

Peg hanging out with the little ones.

My stomach is now just shy of 37 inches around, and I am weighing in 17.6 lbs over pre pregnancy weight!

The wee ones are active all of the time now, and you can see a foot, knee, or arm scrape across my upper right abdomen pretty much anytime you'd like.  Ry says its kinda creepy.  It is pretty weird, but I am used to it enough by now that I don't think too much about it.  I have cut WAY back on my work schedule, but I am still enjoying some time away from the house.  The great weather we have been having has allowed me to get out for some walks and enjoy something very rare in North East Ohio...SUNSHINE!! haha!  Peg likes to go with me for my walks and it is nice to have a little companion.  While she is a mini little curly haired angel, she still is no substitute for Nicole!  haha!! I miss running with the ladies, but I have been abel to catch up with a few of them over post run brunch, and I get to see Nicole tomorrow!  woo hoo to nice enough weather for me to bike alongside the ladies!

My mini, curly haired little angels!

Week 24 Full Steam Ahead!

I think I have finally forgotten how much pain I was in on Sept 29th 2012. This is the date of my last marathon right here in Akron!  My slowest, most painful marathon to date! 3:00:02 while sick and quite injured.  I never thought I'd forget the pain enough to want to run another one!  However, today I found myself wishing I was going for a long run in the beautiful 50 degree misty morning we had here in Akron today.  I want to feel exhausted from really pushing my body, not from walking into the next room! haha! 

I miss the feeling of elated exhaustion after a tough workout, a long run, or a race.  Is it September yet?!?  It is hard to believe I haven't run in nearly 4 months.  This is the longest break I have had since I started running at 12 years old.  18 years later I still love the sound of pitter patter on the streets or trails, and there are few things better than feeling tired from a step forward in training or a new PR in a race. 

This is the feeling I want.

Racing

This is the feeling I have.  HAHA!

Dog tired.

Things have been well over the past week, and I can say, the weeks keep passing by relatively quick (can I get a hallelujah)!  I have gained 16.4 lbs  and I am up to 36.5 inches around at my belly button. I find it a challenge to breathe when I eat, and I have been having more and more days where I simply feel uncomfortable.  All in all I am still hanging in there and wishing away this time more than I should! haha!  I try to embrace it, but I'm not great at it.  We have our first of 3, yes that is correct 3, baby showers next week and I look forward to seeing family and friends and celebrating our soon to be double sized Spellman family.  I haven't felt sick in awhile now, so that is something to really celebrate!  Our sweet little angels have a birth survival rate at this week of 59 % so that's a nice little jump from the 37% they had only a week ago! 

Reverse turtle shell at the end of 23 weeks.

On to week 24!