The Creech Twins

5 Months Old

2010-04-20T18:39:00.000-07:00

The twins are now 5 months old and doing great! They are growing so fast, which makes me sad that time is flying by. We went to Nate's parents house for Easter and were able to get some great pictures with his Dad's camera. We just ordered a brand new Canon Rebel, so hopefully we will have more pictures to post soon. Don't have much time to update now, but thought I'd at least post the pictures!

Time Flies

2010-02-16T19:27:00.000-08:00

The babies are now almost 4 months old and doing wonderfully. I can't believe how fast they are growing! They are so much more interactive now and I am falling more in love with them everyday. Their cute smiles and coos melt my heart!

In other news, I went to a neonatal conference last week and while I was so happy to see them when I came home, being back in the environment of medicine made me realize that I really miss my career and I think I will be ready to go back to work sooner rather than later. While I don't ever take the babies for granted, I will say that being a stay-at-home Mom to twins is a million times harder than I ever expected. Last week made me realize that I need that away time to fully appreciate the time I spend with them.

Nothing else new to report. The snow here is ridiculous and frankly I am sick of it! I hate cold weather and am ready for spring to come! Anyway, enough complaining about that! Here is a slide show of pictures that our friend Jeremy took of the twins a few weeks ago, aren't they adorable!!!

Finally More Photos!

2010-01-18T12:08:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I am a day late, but better late than never! So things around here have been quite busy with our two little ones. They seem to be more interactive every day. Both babies love to smile at us and coo to get our attention. They love their mobiles and playing at night on their activity mat that has lots of cool things for them to look at.

We had our 2 month check up last week (the babies were 10 weeks old) and both babies are catching up on their growth curves wonderfully! Cooper weighed in at 10 lbs 14 oz, which puts him in the 25-50th% for weight (he was 10th% at birth), and he is 23 1/4 inches long (50th%). His reflux is much better on Prevacid and he seems to be catching up to his sister. Isabella, however, still remains the chunkier of the two. She weighed in at 11 lbs 2 oz, which is 50th% for weight (she was 3rd% at birth!), and 22 1/4 inches long (25-50th%). They got 4 immunizations each and while Cooper was quite brave, Isabella turned bright red and cried real tears! : ( I medicated them with Tylenol prophylactically around the clock for 24 hrs and thankfully neither had fever or were even fussier than normal. Yay!

We are beginning to get our routine down now and while they are both pretty fussy in the evenings, usually we have them bathed, fed and in bed by 9:30 or 10:00 p.m. Cooper is a great sleeper and falls asleep right after his feed and we are able to put him right down in his crib with his pacifier. Isabella, on the other hand, fights sleep to the bitter end. We spend lots of time at her bedside trying to soothe her and putting her pacifier back in until she falls asleep. Hopefully, she will be a better sleeper soon! Both babies usually sleep until 3 or 4 a.m. and after their feed Cooper goes right back to sleep, but Isabella sometimes thinks it's playtime. The only way to get her back to sleep is to bring her in our bed, which, of course, then she falls asleep right away! : ( We try not to do it too often, but sometimes after 1-2 hrs of fighting with her we give in, hopefully, this won't come back to bite us in the butt!

On Thursday, we are going to Chicago to spend the weekend with our friends Jeanette, Jeremy and their adorable son Ethan. We are so excited and looking forward to Ethan's 2nd birthday party on Saturday. Jeremy just bought and awesome new camera and is going to take some pictures of us and the babies this weekend, so I promise to post them next week. In the meantime, here are some photos from the past few weeks.

Cooper and Isabella in their Christmas pajamas that my friend Terri got for them

Isabella sleeping

Isabella enjoying playtime

Isabella loves the giraffe that her Uncle Nic got for them!

Cooper likes to look at himself in the mirror, just like his Daddy! : )

My smiley girl!

Cooper showimg off his toothless grin

Bathtime

Aren't they sweet? It's no wonder why we love them so much!

More Hours Please!

2010-01-16T19:19:00.000-08:00

So sorry I haven't updated the blog lately, but these two little peanuts have been keeping Mommy very busy and there just aren't enough hours in the day! Especially since Daddy was out of town 4 days this week! I promise to update the blog tomorrow with new pictures and our latest 10 week doctor's appointment stats. Oh, and I also plan to blog about all of the stupid things people say to us on a daily basis about twins. You won't believe it! Stay tuned!!

2 months old

2009-12-30T19:47:00.000-08:00

Cooper and Isabella are now 2 months old and are growing so fast! They are both smiling and cooing now and are much more interactive than before, which makes the sleepless nights much easier. They are actually sleeping 5-6 hrs at night now, which is wonderful! I imagine they both weigh 9.5 to 10 lbs now and are just about to outgrow their newborn clothes. I still can't believe that they are ours and that we created such perfect little beings. I feel so lucky to finally be a Mom! I'm not sure whether or not we will ever try to have another baby, but for now my heart is so full of love for these two little ones! Here are some recent pictures of the cuties.

Change of Plans

2009-12-26T13:36:00.000-08:00

I was planning on password protecting the blog in order to post pictures of the babies, but blogger makes it really difficult to do this, as you must invite each person to view the blog and they must have a gmail account to sign in. So, I have decided to take the password protection off and let everyone view the blog. I am planning on posting pictures in the coming weeks and hope everyone enjoys them!

Still here!

2009-11-24T11:35:00.000-08:00

We are still here! We are so happy and everything is going well, but we are totally exhausted! My brother is here helping out, but even with 3 of us, it is difficult to find time to do anything. I haven't had the opportunity to update the blog, or even take many pictures, but I'm going to try to be better in the coming weeks. I am planning on password protecting this site after this entry because I am going to be posting pictures soon. Just e-mail me if you want the password.

THEY ARE HERE!!!

2009-11-04T17:11:00.000-08:00

Our two little miracles arrived yesterday via c-section at 1:11 p.m. and 1:12 p.m. Cooper Bradley Creech was 5 lbs 15 oz and 18 1/2 inches long and Isabella Grace Creech was 5 lb 12 oz and 17 1/2 inches long. Both babies and Trisha are doing wonderfully! Since I am not comfortable posting actual pictures of the babies on the internet, I am choosing to password protect this website. If you are a family member or friend and wish to continue to follow this blog, please email me at alnewton75@hotmail.com for the password. Thanks so much to everyone for your continued encouragement and support over these past 4 years!

HOUSTON...WE HAVE A PROBLEM!!

2009-11-03T08:41:00.000-08:00

This is a guest post written by Nate

This morning I awoke before 4 am, eager in anticipation of the events that would unfold today. The room was dark, Amanda lay silent, engulfed in an Ambien induced slumber. The night before we spent the entire evening packing and preparing for the arrival of Cooper and Isabella. Amanda and I could not believe that we were at the end of a long and bumpy road to parenthood. The emotions ebbed between excitement and fear. Mostly fear from my side of the discussion. As the night rolled on, it became apparent that neither one of us were going to get much sleep. Amanda and I approached this dilemma in vastly different ways. I used my tried and true technique of letting my head hit the pillow. I am told it took longer than normal and I was asleep in 2 minutes. Amanda apparently tossed and turned, playing out every potential catastrophe that could happen today. At some point after midnight, she succombed to the desire to get at least one last night of sleep...Ambien enter stage left.

Fast forward a brief four hours. I lay in bed wide awake, contemplating how today would unfold. It is hard to comprehend the fact that by the time the sun sets today I will be a father. Until now, the countless IVF's and the majority of the surrogate pregnancy has been mostly theoretical for me. I have not had the constant reminder of a pregnant wife or the endless doctors appointments. Now that the day is upon us, the reality that our life will never be the same is sinking in.

By 6:30 this morning, we were up and in the car with Trisha on the way to the hospital. Our plan was to arrive by 7:30 to start the induction and have the twins early this afternoon. Like all well laid plans, our changed by about 7:45. It seems Isabella had a different plan. Sometime during the night she managed to flip around again to the breech position. This, of course, ruled out our plan for a natural birth and reversed our course back to a c-section birth. After a moment of disappointment by everyone, we regrouped and are now planning on going to the operating room at 1:00 PM CST. Until then, we are enjoying the fine hospitality of the St. Lukes Hospital.

Here are some pics of us waiting patiently...

HOUSTON.....WE HAVE LIFT OFF!! (Well, sort of!)

2009-11-02T20:14:00.000-08:00

We had our weekly doctor's appointment today and had decided to attempt to proceed with a natural delivery, since both babies are head down. We expected to have to beg for an induction for Friday, instead of waiting until Monday. However, our wonderful nurse practitioner checked Trisha and said that she is 3 cm dilated and ~75% effaced. So, she said, "Let me talk to Dr. Gibbs" and a few minutes later came back and told us we are scheduled for induction tomorrow! WHAT? TOMORROW YOU SAY??? YAY!!!! So, we are to report to L&D at 7:00 a.m. tomorrow morning for induction. Nate and I both left excited and I was feeling a bit nauseous! After all this time, I can't believe we are going to meet our babies tomorrow! Amazing! The hospital has WiFi, so I will try to update the blog as the day goes on and hopefully we will have an uneventful natural birth without any surprises! I just ask if you know us in real life, please don't post anything about our babies birth or surrogate on facebook. There are some things we would like to keep private. Well, now I'm off to bed so I can lie there and obsess about all the things that could go wrong tomorrow. I know, I have issues! : )

SHOCKER!!

2009-10-30T19:14:00.000-07:00

Today we had our non-stress test and ultrasound and guess what, just guess... you'll never guess... BOTH BABIES ARE HEAD DOWN!!! WHAAATTT??? I am shocked!! Okay, so this changes everything. Per the doc, IF they remain head down (because clearly, they can flip at any time!) Trisha will be induced on the 9th, unless she decides she wants a c-section. So, now we have a lot to discuss because it would be much easier on Trisha if she doesn't need to have a c-section, and as I said before, there are some benefits of labor for the twins. We obviously don't need to decide right this minute, but it looks like we may be heading for a natural delivery after all! The babies looked good, so we are still just in waiting mode. Trisha is about 2 cm dilated and 75% effaced, which is unchanged from earlier this week. She is still having some contractions, but clearly they are not causing any cervical changes. Ugh!! Waiting, I HATE WAITING!!!

36 4/7 weeks

2009-10-29T11:30:00.000-07:00

We're still here! Not much to report. Trisha's kids were sick last week and now I am sick too! : ( Trisha had some contractions on Tuesday and we were hopeful that labor was starting, but they stopped after a few hours. Nathan came in on Tuesday evening just to be sure he was here for the big event, but alas, we are still waiting! We have an appointment tomorrow afternoon for our non-stress test and a limited ultrasound to check amniotic fluid levels and cord dopplers. It's funny, even now, I can't relax. I am so scared something bad is going to happen and now I just want them to come out, so I can hold them in my arms and see that they are okay. I hate being this way, I just know too much! It's true that ignorance is bliss and right now I just wish I was NOT a neonatal nurse practitioner who has seen so much tragedy! I am so ready to see their sweet little faces, but unfortunately I have to wait until they are ready. I just keep telling myself only 11 more days max! At least Nathan is here now, that has eased some of my anxiety about him missing the delivery, but OMG, I could really use some xanax!
: ) Anyway, here is last Sunday's belly pic.

35 3/7 weeks

2009-10-21T17:49:00.000-07:00

I can't believe we have made it this far and are still going strong!! We had our doctor's appointment yesterday and all is well. The babies' non-stress test looked "textbook" according to the L&D nurse, which makes me extremely happy! Trisha has gained 40 lbs and was measuring 42 weeks. The babies are very active and also both remain breech. : ( We scheduled a c-section for Monday, November 9th, but don't think we will make it until then. Trisha is definitely ready for them to be born and anything we get past now is just cake! If they were born today, most likely they would not require any NICU time. Not much else to report. We will continue to have bi-weekly non-stress tests and will start having doctor's appointments weekly from now on. Our next appointment is Tuesday and then we will have an ultrasound the following Friday. Nate is coming back to Kansas City on Friday, October 30th and will stay until the babies are born or we have the c-section. So, I told Trisha she has to keep the babies in at least 9 more days and then she is free to deliver anytime after that! Needless to say, I think she gave me a dirty look! : ) No, just kidding! Here is the belly on Sunday at 35 weeks.

34 5/7 Weeks

2009-10-16T13:08:00.000-07:00

Today we are 34 5/7 weeks! I can't believe that on Sunday we will have made it to 35 weeks!!! I couldn't be more thrilled with our progress! We had our growth scan today and everything looked good. The estimated weights were 5 lbs 8 oz for Cooper and 5 lbs 4 oz for Isabella, which are wonderful! Nate was able to come into town last night and come to the ultrasound today, which was great since he hasn't seen them since our 26 week 3D/4D ultrasound. He couldn't believe how big they have gotten! At this appointment, both babies were breech and that means Trisha is heading toward a C-section. : ( We didn't have doctor's appointment today, but we did see Dr. Lu and he is looking into scheduling C-section on Nov. 9th, although he didn't seem to think she would last that long before delivering since the majority of twins deliver by 37 weeks. So, we are still just waiting for these babies to decide they are ready to come out and meet everyone. In the meantime, I am enjoying that Nathan is here visiting. I miss him and the dogs so much, but it's definitely a worthy cause! Anyway, here is a photo of Trisha last weekend on Sunday at 34 weeks, they are definitely growing!

33 weeks

2009-10-07T20:14:00.000-07:00

So, here we are at 33 3/7 weeks and we are thrilled that everything continues to go smoothly. We had a doctor's appointment yesterday and everything looked good. The non-stress test looked great, as well as both babies' amniotic fluid levels, heart rates, and umbilical cord dopplers. Trisha has gained 37 lbs so far and was measuring 41 weeks this week (Dr. Lu thinks she will measure around 52 weeks when she delivers!), which is up 3 weeks from our last appointment 2 weeks ago. It's a good sign that the babies are growing well and we will have our next growth scan next Friday. I am guessing they weigh around 4 1/2 to 5 lbs now, so they are definitely getting big! This week Cooper was lying transverse and Isabella is now breech. So, they are still flipping around in there and that gives us hope that Cooper may eventually turn head down so that Trisha can avoid a C-section, we'll just have to wait and see. We are so thankful to have another week under our belt and it is hard to believe that we have only 4 1/2 weeks or less to go! So, that means I'm going to bed now, because I need all the sleep I can get in these next few weeks! : )

First Babies' Photos and Nursery Photos

2009-10-03T16:51:00.000-07:00

As we are getting closer to the twins arrival, I find myself wondering how our first babies are going to respond to the new babies. If you haven't already figured this out, our first babies are our fur babies Little Bit and Bailey. Little Bit is 12 1/2 years old and Bailey is 6 years old and I have had them both since they were 6 weeks old. I definitely love them as if they were my children and have found much comfort in their presence, especially in the past few difficult years. They are always there to greet me when I get home and Bailey sleeps right beside me in bed every night. The great thing about fur babies is that they always love you no matter what!

I think Little Bit will have very little interest in the two newbies, as he is mostly interested in sleeping or eating these days. Bailey, on the other hand, is a much bigger momma's baby and does not like to share the attention at all! I imagine he will behave much like a toddler who now has to share their parent's attention with a new baby. It will interesting to see how he reacts. At any rate, here are some photos of our fur babies, who we could not live without!! Here are also some photos of the finished nursery.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Now it's off to Kansas City on Monday. Wish us good luck!!

32 weeks!

2009-09-27T19:41:00.000-07:00

One more week down, only 6 more (max) to go!

31 Weeks

2009-09-23T19:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I came to Kansas City for our doctor's appointment. Everything looks good and both babies are growing well. Our growth scan estimated Cooper's weight at 4 lbs 1 oz and Isabella's weight at 3 lbs and 14 oz. So she is still a little smaller, but both are around the 50th% for weight. I can't believe how much they have grown!! It's getting super crowded in there and harder to get good ultrasound photos so we didn't really get any cute shots this week. : ( I can't complain though, I am lucky to get to see them so often! Cooper is still breech so it is unlikely that he will turn at this point. If not, we are looking at a c-section the week of Nov 9th if she doesn't go into labor before that. Trisha continues to have some contractions, but as of yesterday, no cervical changes. YAY!! Her blood sugars continue to look good and they said she can cut back to checking them 2 days a week, which I am sure she is happy about. She is measuring 38 weeks and has gained about 32 lbs so far. She looks great and is feeling good. Next week she starts bi-weekly non-stress tests and our next doctor's appointment is in 2 weeks. So, another great appointment and another week under our belt. We are thrilled!

Today, Trisha and I drove to St. Louis because she has a training class for work and I told her I wasn't going to let her drive 4 hrs by herself, so she allowed me to come with her. : ) She is so good to me! We will be heading back to Kansas City tomorrow afternoon and then I am heading back to Cleveland early Friday morning. Next week my Mom is visiting and then Nate's Mom and step-dad are coming for the weekend. The following week, I am heading back to Kansas City (via car) to start my vacation at my home away from home. Trisha is excited, she is ready to have a full-time housewife! : )

I have so much left to do before I come here to stay, time is flying by. We had a second baby shower this past weekend in Indiana with Nate's family and received so many wonderful gifts for the babies. I am still trying to get all of the adorable outfits washed and put away, it's amazing how many outfits these two little babies have! I will post some pics as soon as I get them from Nate's Aunt Donna (she is the most wonderful photographer!). We had such a great time and it was so good to see everyone! Nate even got to practice being a Dad. Nate's cousin Melissa was there with her 3 week old ADORABLE baby girl, Emily, and he held her for a while. Now he just needs to learn how to feed a baby and change a diaper! I told him not to worry, he will get plenty of practice in a few weeks!! : )

Repost of Belly Shots and New Blog Template

2009-09-17T15:42:00.001-07:00

Since I am continually updating the belly shots slideshow, I am reposting it. Also, I got a new blogger template since I didn't like the last one. What do you think, do you like it?

WE ARE IN THE 30's PEOPLE!!

2009-09-14T18:45:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, we turned 30 weeks. Knowing the outcomes for preterm infants, I am elated to be out of the 20's!! We had our doctor's appointment last Friday and everything went well. We only had a brief scan to check heart rates and cord dopplers, both looked good. As of now, Cooper is breech and Isabella is vertex (head down). Dr. Lu thinks that if Cooper doesn't turn head down in the next 2 weeks that it is unlikely that he will be able to turn before birth since it's getting really tight in there. If Cooper doesn't turn, Trisha will need to have a c-section. We were hoping to avoid this, mostly because it would be a major surgery for Trisha, but also because there are some benefits of laboring for the twins. Dr. Lu said if Trisha doesn't go into labor before 38 weeks he would induce her or perform a c-section that week, which would be the week of November 9th. So, we have 8 weeks, AT THE MAXIMUM, left to go before these little ones make their grand entrance. In the meantime, while Trisha is having some contractions, she is controlling them with rest and things are looking good. She was measuring 37 weeks at our appointment and has gained about 32 lbs so far. Also, on the diabetes front, with the exception of a few elevated blood sugars, her numbers have been within normal range. The doctor wants her to continue to check her sugars 4 times daily for now and once they are stable, she can cut back to 2 times a day. Our next appointment is a week from tomorrow on the 22nd. At that time, we will have another full growth scan which will tell us estimated weights. The following week (at 32 weeks) Trisha will begin bi-weekly non-stress tests to evaluate the babies heart rates for signs of distress since things are starting to really get squished in there. So, that's the plan for now, we'll see how it goes!

This weekend we are headed to Indiana for a baby shower with Nathan's family which should be fun. Then next week I'm off to Kansas City on Tues through Friday for our appointment. The week after that my Mom is coming to visit and then the first week of October I am driving to Kansas City to take up temporary residence until the little ones are born. I can't believe how fast the weeks are flying by and that soon our babies will finally be home with us!

House photos, Furniture photos, and Nursery Photos

2009-09-09T19:36:00.000-07:00

Since moving, I have to admit that I have been a bit bored. It's strange not having a job and I have been struggling to find things to keep me busy. So, my first project was shopping for new dining room furniture for us. I went to Thomasville and found a table and chairs that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE!! So after much convincing (that would be me convincing Nate) with my "it's not just furniture, it's an investment" argument, I was able to order the table and 6 chairs. I still want to get the matching buffet and 2 more chairs, but those will have to wait for now. The table was delivered this past Friday and we were able to use it this weekend when Jeanette, Jeremy, and Ethan visited and it was wonderful!! It's going to be so great for holiday dinners! So here are some photos of our new dining room table. Also, we got a new chandelier for the living room that Nathan and his Dad installed a few weekends ago. It looks great, here is a photo.

My second project was to weed the front flower beds and rip out the ugly marigolds that the builder put in. It took about 4 days to get all of this done and then Nate put down new mulch. It's amazing how much better it looks! I wish I would have taken before photos, but here are some after photos. We are also finally starting to get the lawn in shape, but we still have lots to do!

Finally, after about 10 weeks of waiting, the nursery furniture was delivered today. I put the linens on the cribs (even though I have to take it back off to wash it before the babies use it) to see how everything is going to look. It all looks really cute!! I still have to order the wall art that I want. I am putting a tree on the wall between the cribs and maybe the babies names over their cribs. I think seeing everything in the room makes it feel even more real for me and is making me realize that we don't have much longer to go before we will be parents. Our lives will never be the same. That's a bit of a scary thought, but I'm anxious to start the next chapter of our lives. Here are some photos of the nursery, though it's hard to get good photos because the room is large and I can't get a very good angle.

Tomorrow I'm off to Kansas City for our doctor's appointment. We will also be meeting with the dietician to discuss Trisha's blood sugars and hopefully we won't need any further intervention. I'll update on Friday after the appointment. Unfortunately, we will only be getting a limited scan this week and won't get another growth scan for 2 more weeks, but at least we will get a glimpse of the little cuties. As usual, I can't wait!!

Bump in the Road

2009-09-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

Well, we have our first bump in the road. Trisha failed her 1 hr and 3 hr glucose tolerance test and has officially been diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that women get during pregnancy that is caused by the hormones that are produced by the placenta. Since our twins are fraternal and there are 2 placentas, the risk is higher for having GD. So, today Trisha is meeting with a dietician and will start testing her blood sugars four times a day for the next week and log them. Then next week, we will meet with her again and she will review the data and make a plan for us. Hopefully, it can be diet controlled and we will not need insulin injections because then things become more complicated. Trisha is a healthy eater so hopefully won't need to go down that road. Otherwise, all is well and we are celebrating another week on the inside! YEA!

Third Trimester Here We Come!!

2009-08-24T18:22:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, we turned 27 weeks!! Yea!! We are now starting our third trimester and everything is going wonderfully! We had our doctor's appointment today and both babies are growing well. Cooper is now 2 lbs 3 oz and Isabella is 2 lbs. I can't believe how fast they are growing! Trisha is measuring 33 weeks and besides being a little tired (hmm.. I wonder why :), is feeling great. We will have appointments every 2 weeks now for the rest of the pregnancy just to check up on the little cuties. We also had our 4D ultrasound on Friday and finally got to see their sweet faces (well, mostly Cooper's). Isabella wasn't cooperating (as usual) and was turned away from us most of the time so the quality of her photos weren't nearly as good as Cooper's. The pictures are really cute though and clearly it is starting to get a little squished in there. Isabella's butt was in front of Cooper's face half of the time and they kept kicking each other. Technology is so amazing, I can't believe how clear some of the photos are, but some of them look like there is just a head and no body, which is kind of creepy!! The last picture of the slide show is from today's visit. The U/S tech got a 4D shot of her yawning and spreading out her little fingers, it is so cute. I can't wait to meet them in person (okay, I can wait at least 9 more weeks ... 36 weeks (that's our goal), here we come!!

IGNORANT PEOPLE SUCK!!

2009-08-12T14:48:00.000-07:00

WARNING: I AM ABOUT TO START RANTING, DO NOT CONTINUE READING THIS POST IF YOU DON'T WANT TO HEAR ME BLOWING OFF SOME STEAM!

I am find that the concept of infertility and surrogacy are very foreign to many people. Sometimes even people who I think should know better say such ignorant and hurtful things. I wish I didn't have to constantly explain (and/or defend) our situation. Take for example today, I had to go to Nate's office for a health screening and I met some of his co-workers and their wives. So the conversation went something like this:

Co-workers wife (let's call her Sara): So, I hear you guys are expecting twins. Congratulations!

Me: Yes, we are very excited.

Sara: When are they due?

Me: November 22nd.

Sara: Oh, really? (She looks confused - okay, she doesn't know the situation as Nate hasn't shared this part with many people at his work and clearly I don't look 6 months pregnant with twins.)

Me: We have a surrogate.

Sara: Oh, that's great! You are so lucky! You get to skip all the bad stuff! You don't have to get stretch marks, or gain weight or worry about being so exhausted after giving birth that you can't even take care of your baby. That's how I was after I had my kids.

Me: Well, I don't know about that, it's not by choice. (Okay, now I'm trying not to act outwardly annoyed as I have heard this crap so many times in the past few months when I tell other women about our situation.)

Sara: Well, I just had such terrible pregnancies. I was nauseous all the time, your lucky you don't have to go through all that.

Me: I guess that's one way to look at it. (I quickly change the subject, because I no longer want to have this discussion).

I guess it is hard for someone who has never gone through infertility to understand how bad it sucks not to be able to carry your own child!! Other women say how lucky I am, how this is the "best case scenario", but I don't feel very lucky. I don't feel lucky that it took us almost 4 years, 9 IVF cycles, 3 surgeries, hundreds of shots and another woman's uterus to get where we are today. I don't feel lucky that I will never be able to know what it feels like to have my babies grow inside me. I don't feel lucky to know that another woman gets to feel them kick or that when they are born, it is her voice that they will know. I don't feel lucky to know that most likely these are the only babies that we will ever have and that I can never again surprise my husband with "we're pregnant". I would throw up a hundred times a day, gain 100 lbs, and be sleep deprived for the next 10 years if I could be pregnant. I would give anything to be able to carry my own child. So, no, I don't feel lucky and other women should know better than to say something so ignorant and hurtful.

Baby Shower Photos

2009-07-27T13:56:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos from our baby shower in Chicago. My two very best friends and our Moms gave the shower for us and we had a great time! I have to admit it was a bit surreal being at my own baby shower, having attended so many others in the past 4 years. I guess sometimes it is still hard to believe that this is actually happening. Anyway, we had a great time and got tons of wonderful gifts!!

21 WEEK UPDATE AND TOTAL CUTENESS!!

2009-07-15T16:40:00.000-07:00

Today we had our OB appointment and everything looked great!! The babies are growing wonderfully! Trisha is now 21 3/7 weeks pregnant and is really starting to show. She looks so cute with her little belly!! The babies are moving a ton, but they always seem to be sleeping when I'm around so I haven't been able to feel them yet. Today, he (twin A) weighed 448 gms (1 lb) and is about 12 inches long and she (twin B) was 467 gms (1 lb) and is about 11 inches long. Trisha has gained about 17 lbs so far and is measuring at 28 weeks. Per the OB, the twins' weights are at about the 50th percentile, which is perfect. They are measuring at 22 0/7 weeks, which is 4 days ahead of schedule. Trisha is feeling great and the pregnancy is going along smoothly, so we couldn't ask for anything more. We are just taking things one day at a time, that's all we can do.

Belly Pics!!

2009-07-01T15:22:00.001-07:00

Here are Trisha's belly shots throughout the pregnancy so far. I have been updating them weekly and will continue to do so until the babies deliver. She has been so wonderful for posing for me every week and sending them to me when I am not there. It is so exciting to see the progress because I know that means that the babies are growing!!

IT'S OFFICIAL!!

2009-06-25T19:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it is official! We are expecting a little boy and a little girl and we couldn't be more excited! We had our 18 week ultrasound a day early because Trisha was in a minor car accident and we wanted to make sure the babies were okay. Thank goodness Trisha, her daughter Sam, and both babies were fine. Hopefully the pregnancy will continue without any more bumps in the road, we are hoping for at least 18 more weeks on the inside. I'll try to post the pics of twin B's big reveal this weekend if I get a chance (I always seem to be behind!).

Moving from Chicago to Cleveland

2009-06-22T08:44:00.000-07:00

Well were doing it again. Our fourth move in seven years. This time we are moving from just outside Chicago to a suburb of Cleveland. Check out the video to get a tour of the new house. See you all in Cleveland.

PRESENTING.....

2009-06-20T19:03:00.001-07:00

TWIN A - MR. CREECH

That is definitely male genitalia!!

This is his sweet little profile. I know he will look just like Nathan, he has his full lips!!

Here is a picture of his little foot.

And then we have...

TWIN B - MISS ????? CREECH

Well, the B twin seems to be the trouble maker, which I've already told Nathan that he gets to take care of the crazy twin. This baby's umbilical cord was in the way and we couldn't tell the gender for sure. The doctor said if he had to guess he would say boy, but the tech looked again after he left and said that she thinks girl and since I really would love one of each, we are hoping for girl!! But, two sweet little boys would be okay too! If it is a girl, then I was right in my prediction from the beginning that twin A was a boy and twin B was a girl, hmmm.. mother's intuition maybe? :)

This is her sweet profile, she definitely has my chin!

This is a cute one of her sucking her thumb!!

Last, but not least, here is a picture of her little foot. I love that the tech took those pictures and gave them to us!! Well, only 4 more days until our next appointment and ultrasound, which hopefully can confirm that twin B is a girl. We have been really busy getting ready for our move and haven't had much time to update the blog lately, but I will try to upload the video of the whole 16 week ultrasound when I get a chance. By the way, Trisha sent me a text last weekend to let me know that she felt the babies move for the first time. Hopefully they will be active when I visit next week and I can feel them move! I can't wait to meet them!

Looking Back and Now Looking Forward

2009-06-08T07:47:00.000-07:00

Well, today is the big day. Today we are going to Kansas City to have our 16 week appointment and hopefully (if the little ones cooperate) find out the gender. It's hard to believe we have come so far. Yesterday we were cleaning up around the house and I was going through my IVF stuff. I have so many mixed feelings when going through all of this stuff. On one hand I want to throw it all away and never think about those times again, but there is a part of me that is still too afraid to believe that this has actually worked and I won't ever need to travel this road again. Just thinking of all the things I put myself through these past 3 1/2 years to get where we are today, it is hard for me to imagine how other people seem to just get pregnant so easily. I had 7 sharps containers full of needles that I used to inject myself with medications over 9 IVF cycles. I decided I needed to count them and so the grand total was 455+ shots (not counting 1 sharps container that I already got rid of). So let's see, that puts the tally at 3 1/2 years of trying, 1 ectopic, 3 IVF doctors, 3 surgeries, 9 IVF cycles, 455+ injections, one bout of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, one wonderful surrogate, and tens of thousands of dollars spent....and now our precious twins....I wouldn't change a thing.

12 Week Ultrasound Video

2009-05-25T12:35:00.000-07:00

Here is the full video from the 12 week ultrasound. Aren't they cute!! Well, today we are 14 weeks 1 day and have made it through the first trimester. We are very excited to have made it this far and can't believe how quickly the weeks are passing by. I get to see them again in 2 weeks from today and I can't wait! Hopefully, we will find out the gender because I can't wait to start shopping!! :)

12 week 1 day Ultrasound Photos

2009-05-11T19:36:00.000-07:00

I am finally up to date on these posts! We had our 12 week ultrasound today. It was supposed to be a nuchal translucency scan to evaluate for chromosomal abnormalities, however, our little beans did not want to cooperate. Twin A kept trying to stand on it's head and twin B wouldn't stop moving long enough to get measured. So, it was a failure, but the doctor seemed to think everything looked fine even though he couldn't get an official measurement. The babies have grown so much in only 2 weeks, it is amazing!! Their arms and legs are getting so long, and they look so cute in their profile pictures! Our next appointment is in 4 weeks and I can say that I am really sad that I have to wait that long to see them again. Hopefully, we will find out the gender at the next appointment, but I have a hunch that A is a boy and B is a girl. We'll see! Here are the photos from the ultrasound. I have a video of the full ultrasound that I will try to get on the blog in the next few days.

10 weeks 1 day Ultrasound Photos

2009-05-11T19:31:00.001-07:00

Okay, I know these are a little out of order, but bear with me. These ultrasound photos are from our 10 week ultrasound (4/27/09).

Happy Mother's Day to me!!

2009-05-11T19:17:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to all!! For the first time in 3 years I can honestly say I was excited about Mother's Day. It is still almost impossible to believe that this is all real and that I am actually finally going to be a Mom. Nathan and I are so grateful to Trisha, without her, none of this would have been possible. She is one of the most amazing, selfless women I have ever met. To think that 6 months ago we hardly knew each other, and yet she was willing to go through all of this and sacrifice so much to give Nathan and I the chance to be parents. We have become wonderful friends and I feel so honored to have her in my life. Not to mention the fact that she is an amazing Mom! Her kids absolutely adore her and I know that she is going to be a great aunt to these two little babies that she is carrying. I feel so grateful to have been given this opportunity to be a Mom, everyone should be so lucky.

8 weeks 1 day Ultrasound Photo

2009-05-11T19:13:00.000-07:00

The 8 week ultrasound photos are not the best. There was only 1 that you could even really make out, so here it is. Definitely 2 peas in the pod!!

7 week 1 day Ultrasound Photos

2009-05-11T18:51:00.000-07:00

Here are some other ultrasound photos, I finally got them scanned onto a disk. 2 babies, 2 heartbeats, 2 amazing! Also, a picture of Trisha and I. Enjoy!!

7 weeks 1 day

Part III

2009-05-11T18:43:00.000-07:00

Part 3, originally written on Thursday, April 2nd 2009 along with a photo from our very first ultrasound:

A week ago, Trisha (our surrogate) came to Chicago and had an ultrasound to verify that this pregnancy is in utero, since IVF pregnancies have a higher risk of being ectopic. It was still very early (5w4d) and we knew that we would not see an embryo or heartbeat yet, but we were hoping to see at least 1 gestational sac. We knew that Trisha’s beta values were high according to all the charts we found and were giddy at the possibility of twins. We were all very nervous on our way to the ultrasound. We all talked about what we thought we would see, singleton or twins. Trisha and I thought singleton and Nate decided to stick with twins. When the tech started the ultrasound she had the screen turned toward her. It was dark in the room and I was the only one of the three of us that could see the screen. I saw her begin to scan through the uterus and saw one small gestational sac and then to my surprise as she continued to scan, I saw a second sac. I was in shock!! I couldn’t even speak and was only able to hold up 2 fingers to Nate. Well, Trisha, who was obviously lying down, saw my fingers from t

he side and thought I was only holding up only one finger and replied, “Oh, so it’s just one”. I still couldn’t speak and now neither could Nate. The tech then turned the screen toward us and Trisha saw it for herself. There on the screen were two of the most beautiful little black blobs I have ever seen!! I believe Trisha said, “Holy crap!”. I think we were all in a little bit of shock, but also overjoyed at the same time. Both sacs measured 5w3d, which is perfect! I left the appointment thrilled, but yet still guarded, as I know it is very early. We will continue to keep this to ourselves until after the next ultrasound on 4/6 when we confirm heartbeats. We hope and pray that our tiny little ones will continue to grow and thrive.

Part II

2009-05-11T18:34:00.000-07:00

Here is the next part of the story. I originally wrote this post on Monday, March 23rd, 2009, but it was on our iWeb website which I have now basically abandoned. Anyway here it is ....

Over 3 years ago Nate and I started this journey of trying to expand our family. Through the years we have had many disappointments and a lot of heartache. I should have started this blog a long time ago, but honestly couldn’t bring myself to say how much it hurt out loud, because that would make it all real. I felt I needed to stay strong and poised so that others didn’t feel pity for us or awkward around us. I did, however, spend the last few years reading others blogs which have helped me tremendously. I have realized that all of the things I was feeling were normal and that there were others out there going through the same things that Nate and I were. I now feel strong enough to express my own voice and tell our story.

One week ago, Nate and I found out the most wonderful and scariest news of our lives. Our wonderful surrogate, Trisha, took a home pregnancy test and it was positive. We have since had 3 blood tests at the doctor’s office that show so far the pregnancy is progressing normally. While we are ecstatic, we are also so fearful. Fearful that something bad will happen and that the rug will be pulled out from underneath us. We are afraid to let ourselves believe that we are finally going to be parents, but we are hopeful. Hopeful that for once everything will work our for us and our dream will finally come true. Our first ultrasound is this week on Thursday. We are excited, but guarded. We will have our second ultrasound on Monday, 4/6 to look for a heartbeat. I think it will only be after we know there is a heartbeat that we will feel confident enough to share this pregnancy with everyone. It’s hard to keep the news inside, but we have been burned too many times in the past. For now, I will update the blog, but we won’t publish this until we know for sure that this pregnancy is for keeps.

History Lesson

2009-04-29T19:03:00.000-07:00

Okay, let me back up a little. Since I am a bad blogger and have only done 2 blogs since this whole thing started, I thought I should give a little history on the evolution of this process. Our wonderful surrogate, Trisha, came to Chicago with her husband, my cousin Mark, in January and met with my infertility doc and we were on our way! I had my retrieval on March 1st, 2009 and we got 31 eggs. Twenty one of those fertilized normally which was wonderful! On March 6th, 2009 we had 2 grade 2bb embryos, which we transferred to Trisha. We also had 4 compacting embryos which we transferred to me (what a waste!!) and one grade 3bb embryo that we froze (a totsicle). I had my beta tested on Monday, March 16th and it was, of course, negative. Trisha had been out of town and wasn't getting her beta tested until the following day. I spoke with her that evening and told her how devastated I was that my test had been negative. I repeatedly asked her if she was "feeling pregnant", to which she replied, "not really". I was so sure her test was going to be negative also. She told me on the phone that she wanted to take a home test. I told her she could test if she wanted to, but don't call me if it's negative because I didn't want to know, I'd had all the bad news I could handle for one day. About an hour later the phone rang and I looked down and saw that it was Trisha. I was so scared to answer the phone and my heart was beating out of my chest. I answered the phone and Trisha asked me if I was sitting down. I asked why and she said, "because I'm pregnant!!". I can just remember bursting into tears and thanking her about a million times. I was in TOTAL shock! I couldn't believe it. After 3 years of staring at negative pregnancy tests, squinting and holding them up to the light to try to see some sort of line that wasn't there, I couldn't believe she actually had a positive test. I made her send me a photo so I could see it with my own eyes, and she did. It was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, and it was definitely positive!! I immediately called Nate, who was out of town, to tell him the wonderful news. He couldn't believe it either, we were both elated!! Well, that's all for now, stay tuned for another installment of the history lesson tomorrow night. For now, I need my beauty rest! In the meantime, I will share with you the picture that made me cry like a baby!! Enjoy, I sure did!

10 week ultrasound video

2009-04-28T16:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, iWeb has failed me, so this is my first attempt at trying to upload the ultrasound video onto blogger - so here goes!!