Twin Pregnancy: 23 Weeks!

As of today, we are now 23 weeks along in our pregnancy with the twinbies! I will say that I've been feeling much farther along than I am, but this week I have definitely felt like I am closer to 30ish weeks. I'm sure that's because I'm carrying two babies at once!

 The twin baby belly:

If you think I look extremely tired in the above photo, that's because I was! I spent 3 days in Chicago on a trip with three of my besties this past week, and that photo was taken the morning after we got home. It was a GREAT trip, but I was EXHAUSTED by the time we got home. I will do a full post or two all about the trip soon :-).

Here is a photo we took of me while in Chicago. Isn't the foliage unbelievable?!? It was the perfect time to visit the city.

I took the photo below on Saturday evening, while on the plane flying home. We did a TON of walking in the city . . . lots of stairs, riding public transportation, being on our feet, etc. By the time we boarded the plane, my back was aching something fierce. I noticed each day that as the day would go on and I would get more tired, I would start to really arch my lower back while walking. I was extremely uncomfortable on the plane, but every time I looked down and saw the baby belly it made me smile. Love it!

With all the walking I did on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday in Chicago, I was kind of surprised by a three pound weight gain when I weighed this morning! We did eat well while in the city, but we seriously walked SO MUCH. That puts my total weight gain at 13 pounds now. I think the babies are still in a major growth spurt (judging by how my belly is rapidly growing), and it makes me happy to know they are growing :-).

While on our trip, I had several people ask me when I am due or how far along I am. I always say, "I'm such-and-such far along . . . with twins!" I mean, I'm pretty huge so I like to clarify that there are two babies :-). The next question is generally, "Are these your first?" People tend to act pretty surprised when I tell them that I also have a 2 year old and a 4 year old! I even had people give up their seats for me on the "L" and on a city bus in Chicago, so that was nice. And you had better believe, I took advantage of it! My feet were swollen on Saturday night after flying, but I propped them up while sleeping and they have been fine since then.

I'm not really having any cravings right now. I made my way through most of a box of Twinkies (the kids ate a few), but I'm not feeling like I want to go buy another box. I am craving water throughout the day, so that's a good thing. Of course, drinking tons of water results in having to use the bathroom constantly, but it's worth it. I know it's so important to stay hydrated. We flew to Chicago on Thursday morning, then I drank Coke for lunch that day. Even though I had drank several glasses of water as well, later that afternoon (after tons of walking) I started to have some cramps in my lower abdomen. We were trying to make our way back to our hotel room, but I told the girls I needed to stop and take a break. We sat down at a Starbucks where I downed a bottle of water and immediately felt much better. Later that evening, I made sure to drink several more bottles of water (I think four?) before bed. I really think that I had gotten a bit dehydrated and my body was telling me about it. The girls were always so great to make sure I was okay and that I wasn't overdoing it too much, and I can't tell you how grateful I am for that!

Sleep is back to being much better than it was last week! I think it's partially because I was so exhausted on the trip, but I was sleeping better before we left, too. Each night before bed, Chris has been helping me do leg and back stretches. They have really made a difference with the restless legs and achy hips. They aren't very comfortable to do because if I lay on my back or fold my body up in any way, I feel like I can't breathe. However, they are worth it so I am going to keep at it!

One last thing, I went and got a pedicure early last week before my trip. I normally love having my toes done, but I kind of hated it this time. I'm very sensitive to touch right now (I also had my eyebrows waxed and that was horrible), so my feet were extremely ticklish! Also, she rubbed my calves and feet, and it just bothered me more than it felt good. I initially turned on the pedicure chair to rub my back as well, but turned it off completely after just a few minutes. I've gotten pedicures while pregnant before and can never remember this being an issue. However, I have to keep reminding myself that everything is different (more intense) with this pregnancy!

Today is Chris and my 13th wedding anniversary. We're not going out to celebrate or anything as I'm just too exhausted by the end of the day (officially no fun, I know). However, we ordered food in and are enjoying each other at home :-). Next week we reach the big 24 week milestone!