10 weeks and 1 day

Just two weeks and a few days until my 2nd doctor's visit and sonogram. I feel so impatient about seeing my babies again and making sure they are healthy and safe! Waiting between visits is probably the most difficult part of this experience so far. That, and I've discovered that I get pretty bad car sickness when I ride in the passenger seat, especially after eating. I sure hope this is a temporary condition (not past first trimester!) because Kason and I plan to drive to MS and GA for the holidays in December. I suppose I won't be able to drive/ride such a far distance if the doctor says no. It will be a bummer if I can't, but I will fly to Atlanta if I can. I'll probably have to drive to and from Tyler when we go for Thanksgiving, unless this car sickness goes away 2nd trimester (praying!!!). The heartburn is mostly every now and then, although the new prenatals I'm sampling made me nauseated last night, ugh! I'm just mostly very tired and try to take advantage of energy spurts when they come. Like last night before the prenatal hit, I cooked chicken, tacos, and oatmeal, and felt fine...except I have to make sure I eat every 2 to 2.5 hours or I feel sick/weak. Counting down the days to 11/15 when I go back to the doctor!

Double Surprise!

My best friend, Christina, recommended that I journal about my experiences as a newly expectant mother. She just had her bundle of joy in winter of 2011, so she has enjoyed sharing her experiences and tips with me so far. I've enjoyed how we've reconnected, too.

As suggested by the title, my pregnancy was a surprise, both to my husband and me. I'd already been feeling strange, incredibly hungry (like I couldn't eat enough to satisfy my hunger), and some bouts of bad heartburn, which I blamed on what I'd eaten. Some days I would feel so exhausted that I could barely function, let alone drive the 10 minutes to and from work without dozing off a few times. I'd mentioned these symptoms to my friends, and the first thing they would ask me was if I was pregnant. I didn't think it was possible, so I shrugged it off as being my difficulty adjusting to the new job.

Last weekend, the heartburn was so bad that I went to bed by 9 p.m. on Friday, missing out on the new scary movie V/H/S, for which I'd bought advance tickets. Then I didn't feel well the next day after eating some oatmeal, so I went back to bed until I felt better enough to sit on the couch and watch football. Finally, I just had to know: I had Kason get a pregnancy test from the store while he was getting ginger ale, crackers, and soup for me. It took just a few seconds for the positive symbol to register on both tests. I don't know who was more surprised: Kason or me! We talked about preliminary plans, especially how we would need to accelerate our house-buying plan. We wondered if it would be a boy or a girl and how the baby would look. I scheduled a prenatal visit to confirm the pregnancy and perhaps get a sonogram. In the meantime, I tried to keep eating healthy foods and to drink more water during the work day. By the time Thursday rolled around, I was already feeling unsettled and run down, not to mention heartburn that worsened by the end of the day.

Thursday I went in for my first prenatal visit. The nurse weighed me, tested my pee and other vitals, and asked me some basic questions. Then I saw the ultrasound technician for my sonogram. She looked a moment and said, "Oh, you're going to have twins!" I couldn't believe my ears...or my eyes! I could see them on the screen, two tiny bean-sized miracles. I think I said, "What?!!" a million times before my exam was finished. The nurse was very understanding and explained how healthy the twins looked, how their heart rate was normal, and how Baby A was 8 weeks and 3 days old. I had no idea I was so far along!!! It was an amazing experience to see Baby B's tiny heartbeat fluttering on the screen, and the nurse said he was wiggling a lot. I never imagined I would have twins! For all I know, I could have a twin out there in the world somewhere. Maybe I will never meet her or him, but it seems probable that I do have one, or that my birthmother was a twin. Kason couldn't be at the exam with me, so I texted him and asked him to skip his night classes so I could share the news in person and see his expression.

Kason got home about 6:45, and I told him to sit down first. Then I showed him the sonogram pictures, watching his face. He looked shocked and amazed when he realized what he was looking at. It was so exciting! We called his side of the family on speakerphone and enjoyed hearing their reactions. My mom was thrilled and elated, and she hopes that at least one of the twins is a girl since she already has two grandsons. My sister-in-law was so ecstatic that I'm sure her neighbors wondered what was going on when she screamed her excitement. The holidays will be fun, plus traveling during the second trimester is the safest. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone and blogging my experiences as a newly expectant mother of TWINS!!!! :)