Time warp

My last post was in March. I was pregnant at the time when I wrote it, but it was still early so I didn't announce it. I had to laugh when I was reading the last post and saw the picture from the last Tir Na Nog 8k that I did. I was probably about 4 or 5 weeks pregnant in that little kilt! Hope the beer was put to good use in my womb.  

Fast forward. Tomorrow is the official start date of my third trimester. I can't believe it...the home stretch! I'm sure you all know by now, but Shaun and I are expecting twin boys soon. We are so excited and super scared all at the same time! It has been a whirlwind and I'm sure this whirlwind is small compared to the one that we're about to be in. Here's what has been going on in our Dunning whirlwind...

March 25: Our first ultrasound. We simply wanted confirmation that yes, we're expecting a bundle of joy and yes, it's a viable pregnancy. I remember looking at the screen and trying to make sense of it all when the lady said "This is a twin pregnancy." Simply stated. Needless to say, Shaun and I were shocked! In the eleven years we've been together, I've always teased Shaun that I'm "in line" for twins and to beware. We would always laugh, but walking into that appointment, not once did it cross our minds that we'd see two babies on that little screen! My maternal grandmother (Dorothy Luzier) had a twin brother. Supposedly, it skipped a generation and fell to me. Not sure how much truth there is in all of that "skip a generation" thing, but nonetheless, here they are! 

Our first ultrasound. Baby A and Baby B.

After that appointment, we stood in the parking lot stunned and hugging, only to part ways in our separate cars to head on with our daily lives. This appointment was just a simple confirmation and then they just kick you to the street with your head spinning! It was almost three weeks until our next appointment when we could ask all the questions we wanted. I remember it being such an exciting time, yet scary because there's nothing really there to see or feel. We had three weeks to think and torture ourselves with our own thoughts! Needless to say, we headed in to that second appointment with a handwritten (yes, I'm old school) list of questions. You don't have much time at these appointments, so write your questions down as you think of them at home or from wherever you are! 

Shaun cooking breakfast at MerleFest

We found some relief from our spinning thoughts at MerleFest. It was a small weekend getaway of camping, the most incredible bluegrass musicians and the simple company of my best friend. It was the first time we'd ever been there and it was super kid friendly so we look forward to taking our boys there one day! I had the tiniest "bump" so I remember it starting to feel real at that time. MerleFest was totally worth killing my immune system. Upon return from the weekend, I ended up with the nastiest cold and called out sick from work all three days I was scheduled. I'm one that rarely gets sick, but I got a true taste of a pregnant immune system. What makes it so bad is simply that nothing is safe to take! I credit my recovery to knocking myself out with Tylenol PM and the Neti Pot for irrigating my nasal passages. 

Scythian playing at MerleFest

 If our boys don't enjoy music, I will be stunned. Shortly after MerleFest, they had the pleasure of listening to Band of Horses and in June got to hear The Lumineers. Concerts are definitely different when you're expecting. There's just something about a concert and a good beer that go hand in hand. I find that putting a koozie on my Diet Dr. Pepper makes me feel like I'm part of the party.





The month of May brought on questions of how we wanted our birth to go. I knew I wanted a doula to be by our side for the experience, but during our interview with her, I didn't expect to be so dumbfounded. I quickly learned that I was pretty uneducated with birthing and how I wanted my birth experience to go. I have always thought of birthing as a natural thing for a woman to do, but anymore it seems like you have to put up a battle to do so. Let's face it, the hospital system is set up as a business so of course the system will do what they can do to get you in and out quickly (i.e. start Pitocin, schedule a C-section/push for a C-section when it may not be needed). With this said, letting labor progress naturally takes a long time and like Sweet Brown says, "Ain't nobody got time for that!" 

After meeting with Donna (our doula), she recommended I explore the Bradley Method. Of course I got home and went straight to google. At first, I remember thinking, "Oh geez. Sounds like some wacky crunchy granola crap." But as I kept doing more research and spoke with the instructor (Susan) for the local class, I realized that natural childbirth is the goal, but the method also recognizes the beauty of modern medicine in emergent or necessary situations. Sign us up! We have been enrolled in our Bradley class (a 12-week course) since June 8. We have learned many things and I feel ready to tackle this birth as if I were doin' it in the woods! Of course, our case is a little bit different since we're having twins, but we feel we have prepared ourselves to the best of our ability to have the best experience we can. With that said, I feel mentally prepared to handle whatever happens if it doesn't go the natural way I want it to. As long as our boys arrive healthy and I'm healthy, then I'll consider it a success! 

View from our cabin in Lexington, VA

May also brought us a little family time in Lexington, VA. My stepdad finished sprucing up a bed fame for us and this cute little town served as a midway point for us to pick it up and catch up a bit. We had an amazing time just relaxing, cooking, talking and exploring the town. 

Dumping the river out of my kayak

Sunset in Washington

A month later we had an extensive ultrasound and left with two envelopes that held the gender of baby A and baby B. We tortured ourselves for a few days and drove out to one of our favorite spots in Washington, NC (known as little Washington) to kayak out to a small park and discover what we were having. It was totally worth the wait! The drive there seemed to take forever (it's about 2 hours away). We quickly got the kayaks down, slathered on some sunscreen and paddled rather quickly to the spot. After I capsized my kayak and fell in the river (balance is a little bit trickier), Shaun spent the next 20 minutes dumping the water out while I was on land scoping out a special spot to open the envelopes. We sat down on a little bench and just went for it! I opened the Baby A envelope first and it was a boy! We sat there for a few minutes all giggly and excited and then Shaun opened the Baby B envelope to reveal another boy! Two boys! I called it! For the longest time, we had girl names picked out and zero boy names. I had a gut feeling that it would be two boys simply based on the fact that we had no names! Afterwards we called some family and friends with our exciting news and then of course, made it "Facebook official". That night we were on such a high! We ate dinner at one of our favorite joints and then checked in for a night at a bed and breakfast after enjoying the little downtown and seeing a gorgeous sunset. 

2 boys!

What an incredible journey so far. After the two boy reveal, time has done nothing but go faster. We had family baby showers in PA almost a month ago and felt so much love! It was a great time to make the long drive as I wasn't as uncomfortable as I am now. We got to spend time with so many people we love and the boys were showered with many things to welcome them into the world. We even had a maternity photo shoot with my mom and cousin, Jen as the photographers. Our family is beyond excited for the arrivals and we are so grateful for the support. I only wish they all lived closer :(

As I head into this last trimester, it's fun to reminisce as I write this. As my bump grows, I'm extremely uncomfortable doing anything at this point. But, I will say, the things that make me feel a little better are walking, yoga, massages and my pre-natal DVD workouts. I do everything super slow these days and find myself having to lay down and rest frequently to recharge a bit. It hasn't all been easy. Trust me. I have a permanent knot in the middle of my back that is relentless and I've been dealing with episodes where I nearly pass out that are now increasing in how often they happen. Don't worry, I'm ok and have learned today at our appointment that it's the boys are basically positioning themselves on things in my body that they shouldn't be. I just have to do things to try to get them to move so that I don't end up on the floor. As they get larger and larger, I just have to be more and more careful. On a more positive note, the ultrasound today showed us that both boys look great and weigh in at 2.4 pounds a piece!

I'm looking forward to continuing this amazing journey. We have been working like crazy on the nursery and I recently became a member of the Triangle Moms of Twins and Triplets (TMOTT). I only have a couple of resources for people that have recently had twins so this was a way for me to quickly gain more. I'll take all the help that I can get! I'm also looking forward to a baby shower with friends here in Raleigh and Shaun and I getting away for one last (kidless and dogless) getaway in Beaufort, NC. I believe this is referred to as a "baby moon" nowadays.

Hopefully my next post will not be months away. I know I probably write this after every entry. I'll try to be better...at least, until the boys get here ;) I have to remember that if I post more often, then the entries won't have to be as long! Thank you for reading...I think you deserve a bump picture. I tend not to post them on Facebook, but a lot of people give me crap for not posting a lot. So, if you want to see it, here it comes. If you don't want to see it, then don't look down! This was taken last week...

A week before the big 3rd Trimester!