The Final Countdown Update - 14 Days to Go!

Happy Friday! I LOVE Fridays...not only are they the end of the work week, but Friday, March 18th was the day we transferred our embryos that have become our two miracle Twinkies. So, each Friday is one week closer to meeting our babies.

Today marks exactly 36 weeks. And, in less than 14 days, we will FINALLY be able to hold our babies in our arms, look deep into their eyes, coo sweet-nothings into their ears, have them wrap their tiny hands around our pinkies, tickle their soft feet, watch them yawn and smell the tops of their heads! We're almost in SINGLE DIGITS until we meet them!!!

Although the lyrics have no relevance, I've had the chorus of Europe's "The Final Countdown" running through my head all day. What else can I say, except that I was a teen of the 80's - when male rockers had big hair, wore makeup and tight leather pants, and looked more like women than dudes. (Although the whole neon clothes, rubber bracelets, off-the-shoulder sweatshirts, big hair bows, leg warmers and shoulder pads is something I won't miss if we never see those fads again in my lifetime).

I confirmed Monday that my c-section is now officially scheduled for Friday, November 18th at 7:30 am (so we have to be at the hospital at 5:30 am) and will be performed by Dr. Porreco - the "Oprah Winfrey" of Maternal Fetal Medicine doctors in Denver - there is no one better.

This week, my nausea has persisted, my belly grew again (I put back on 3.5 lbs and now appreciate help getting out of chairs), and back pain has finally kicked in. I often feel like someone took a belt and tightened it right around my upper rib cage. A bath and once-a-week massage do seem to help, but I am fortunate that I have held out this long with almost no back pain.

I did develop a new side-effect in the last two days - nose bleeds (oh joy!). I think they're being caused by the combination of the blood thinners I'm on, the dry weather and the change in seasons.

Yesterday evening, when I went to take my blood thinner shot, I noticed that my belly dropped. Like any woman nearing her due-date, I immediately Googled to find out more. The consensus was that it happens because the Twinkies are running out of room, and it doesn't necessary mean that I'll go into labor soon. One woman even said they could shift higher again...ugh!

Within the last three days, I strongly believe my male labrador has caught on that we're having babies. He's suddenly been sniffing my belly and won't let me out of his sight for more than a few minutes. He even sat outside the shower today waiting for me to finish. Poor puppy (yes, he's about 13 years old, but he'll always be a "puppy" to me) - little does he know his world is about to be turned upside-down!

I can't tell you how many people don't believe us when they ask the sexes and we say "We don't know." I guess it's the norm these days, but I have actually had many people say to me "You know, but you're just not telling, right?" No, we honestly don't know...and it doesn't matter.

As I've written before, the Twinks love live music. Last Sunday, we went to a Mexican restaurant and there was a Mariachi band playing. The Twinks were dancing the Paso Doble - stomping their feet and snapping their fingers. Today, it's a dance recital in Mom's belly, tomorrow they might be a contestant on one of my favorite reality shows - So You Think You Can Dance.

Yesterday (Thursday), I was fortunate enough to find a deeply-discounted, last-minute seat to a matinee performance of The Lion King (did I mention that I LOVE not working?!). Knowing that my due-date was so close to when this play was coming to town, I was hesitant to buy a ticket. By Tuesday I was willing to take my chances that the Twinkies would not arrive in the next 24 hours. It was a WONDERFUL play - the acting was great (especially the actors who played Zazu - the bird who acts as Mufasa's advisor, Timor & Pumba - the warthog and lemur who sing "Hakuna Matata" and the singer who played Rafiki the baboon), the sets were astounding , and the costumes were exquisite. With the incredible job Julie Taymore did on this production, it's hard to believe that Spiderman After Dark was such a flop. I am so glad the Twinkies and I had a chance to see it! In their usual fashion, the Twinkies "sang and danced" the entire 2 hours and 45 minutes.

On Halloween, we had our quarterly all-employee meeting at work. Since I had a Dr's appointment that ended just before the time the meeting was to begin, and the two offices are not that far, I "sneaked" into my office for the one-hour meeting. It was good to see everyone...I do miss them. An hour was definitely my limit - by the time the meeting ended, I was ready to come home and nap (which is exactly what I did).

Like most years, we had lots of Trick-or-Treaters visit our house. Our neighbors turn their yard into a haunted "village" (complete with their friends as actors), so people drive to take their kids to see their house. This year, it seemed like we had more little munchkins Trick-or-Treating and it got me so excited for next year - when we get to dress up our Twinkies!

As for shopping, Amazon has become my new BFF. I love that they give "Moms" one full year of Amazon Prime for free (as long as you order at least $25 of stuff that is "Amazon Mom" eligible). You don't even need to be a Mom to sign up - Dads,Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles can sign up too! It Seems like I check their site at least once a day to see what's on sale. Most recently, I ordered the CD and companion book of Marlo Thomas' "Free to Be You and Me" (you should know this if you were a child in the 70's), a couple more flannel Halo sleep sacks, and some Aden & Anis 47" x 47" swaddle blankets (so many moms rave about them).

So, that's the news from our little corner of the planet...