Has it Really Been 5 weeks?

As of today I've been in the hospital for 5 weeks.  Kind of amazing considering I never in a million years thought I would ever spend anytime inpatient in the hospital.  I've only recently started missing "things" from home.  Of course I miss being with my family, but I've started to miss my bed, my really comfy couch, and well, my home.  Not to long to go now. 

I had a growth scan yesterday and the babies are estimated to be 3.9  and 4.25. Awesome, just awesome. 

5 weeks down, 3.5 more to go - hopefully.

Surprise!

Although I hired midwives for my care, I had forgotten to cancel my next appointment with my OBGYN. Being to late to cancel the appointment I decided to go ahead and go. What was the harm?

Since this was just a routine appointment, I told my husband there was no need for him to come. When the doctor tried to hear the heartbeat with the doppler she got a strong heartbeat, but baby was moving to much to get a good read. She decided to do an ultrasound just to make sure everything was ok.

In the initial ultrasound she was getting a "shadow," not abnormal for an external reading at this stage of the pregnancy.  She opted for an internal ultrasound which immediately looked to me like their might be two heads. I wasn't sure, after all I am not technician trained to read these things. She moved the screen closer and out of my view (clearly, while she did not say anything, she saw what I saw). After a few seconds of her not saying anything I asked if everything was ok, she said yes, but I have news, there are two!

I was out of breath, but oddly not surprised. I kept asking if she was sure and promptly asked her to hand me my phone so I could call my husband. I took a picture of the ultrasound screen and emailed it to him. I called and had him look at the email as I gave him the news. He was pretty shocked and of course since I was not done with my appointment I had to make the phone call quick.

Staring at the ultrasound was amazing. One baby was in the fetal position that you are used to seeing in the ultrasounds, but the other looked as if it were hugging the first one with its arm wrapped around the other and its leg in a spoon like position. What an incredibly site!

My OB expressed a very small concern that there was not a membrane separating the babies. Not being an expert on assessing multiples, she referred me to a perinatologist who specializes in high risk pregnancies and has more in depth equipment to asses the babies.

1st and 2nd Ultrasounds & Healthcare Decisions

Yay, the first ultrasound at 5 weeks looks great and the follow up ultrasound at 9 weeks we can see the heartbeat. Looks like baby is growing great.

Seeing that the pregnancy was progressing well, I began exploring my birth options. My son who is now almost 3, was born via induction in a hospital. Born at 6 lbs, 13 oz there was no cause for concern. To this day he remains long and lean.

Based on my experience with my first son and other close friends birth experiences I wanted a different experience with this baby. My interest turned into a deeper passion, wanting to help educate and empower other woman on their birth options. I pursued certification as a birth doula through DONA .

Shortly after my nine week appointment I decided to hire midwives for my care and to attend my birth.