I can’t believe thirty-two weeks have gone by already. WHOA. There’s a maximum of six weeks to go. I’ve learned that the average gestational age of twins at birth is just 35 weeks, which is, well, not that far from now.

Thirty-two weeks is a pretty good milestone for the babies’ development. According to What to Expect, babies born around this time have an excellent chance of survival, but will need to spend some time in the NICU as they won’t have full lung maturity yet. Two more weeks to go until they’ll be mature enough to be born and cared for at our local hospital (which has a Special Care Nursery but no NICU). Looking forward to hitting that milestone.

The Babies are the Size of: Two Florida Pomelos, says my app. My husband and I had to do a google image search for that one. Huh. The animal comparison is an armadillo (thanks but no thanks) and the other app says, simply, “squash.” Hello, there are many types of squash!

How I’m Doing: Since last week I’ve been feeling markedly better in terms of my mood and my overall state. I’m still large and uncomfortable, but on the whole I am starting to feel like it’s really possible I will teach through the end of classes and keep these babies growing on the inside all the while. I hope that feeling is right!

Relatedly, my husband talked on the phone with his brother for a while tonight and my BIL asked if I had been “put on bed rest yet.” CW just laughed and said no, telling him I’m still working full time. I might seem crazy for still being at work these days, but 1) you can’t teach for just part of the semester, and 2) you can teach sitting down. I’m lucky I only have to be on campus three days a week and can read, research, prep, and grade from home the other two. Phew.

As far as “fun” pregnancy symptoms, I’ve got plenty. The only ones worth mentioning at the moment are itchiness all over my limbs when I try to fall asleep and numb/tingling hands when I wake up. My doctor recommended Benadryl at night as a sleep aid and to calm the itchiness, but if that doesn’t help or if the itching gets worse, we will have to see if it’s a symptom of a bigger problem. (Fingers crossed it’s not.) The numbness seems to be just from not having a good sleeping position that doesn’t impinge on the nerves in my shoulder (my OB and chiropractor agree on this) and it should resolve after the babies are born.

Doctor Visit: My weight and blood pressure are still looking good, and my doctor commented on my lack of noticeable swelling. From my perspective, I feel completely puffy — I can’t wear my wedding rings and my feet are definitely bigger, but she said it’s very minor in comparison to what others experience, so that’s good.

I went to the hospital for my first weekly Non-Stress Test (NST) afterward. They do this test in at the OB’s office for singletons, but in Labor & Delivery for twins and other multiples because it’s easier there for them to monitor more than one baby. The nurses got me all tucked into the bed and placed the monitors for each baby’s heartbeat and a third one to check for my contractions. Then, I just had to hold a counter device that I clicked every time I felt movement. Our very squirmy baby girl kept moving away from her monitor, so the poor nurse wound up standing beside me and holding it in place almost the entire time — which worked! They got all the data they needed and the babies are doing great. I’ll go back for more of this after every weekly appointment from here on.

Coming Up: The nursery is finally almost finished — We just have to hang up some art (tomorrow) and I am going to wash/prep and organize my cloth diaper stash soon as well. I’ll show some pictures once it’s complete.

Next week I have another growth ultrasound, which we only do every four weeks. I’m looking forward to seeing the babies again, getting an estimate of their weights, and finding out if they’re both still head down — if they are, it’s a good sign I might be able to avoid a C-section.