33 weeks

Due to my hands and wrist braces, this post will be short and sweet :)

We've made it to 33 weeks today!  Huzzah!  Each week is another milestone!  I had a routine check up this week with my doctor.  She is happy with everything she is seeing.  It's a good thing, but I'm starting to worry that my body is going to hold out to 39 weeks lol... that would be great and we want healthy babies... but if I'm already this uncomfortable... I can't imagine what I'll feel like then!  She mentioned having me go see a hand specialist, but I told her I wanted to hold off.  The braces have helped a lot and I really just don't want to go see another doctor.  I still get achy and my hands go numb still- especially when I'm driving!  No matter how far the drive, my hands go tingly and numb.  Awesome.

Cravings this week... sadly.. all unhealthy lol... burger, fries and ice cream.  Jon happily obliged to all of the above (on diff days) :)

Lastly, I am having tons of contractions.  None that are concerning, but I'm pretty much laying low.  When I change positions I start having multiple contractions, when I get up to walk they come, bending over, going up stairs, sitting down lol... so who knows what this means.  The doctor isn't worried or anything.  It's just weird.  So, I am being "lazy".  I mean, I am growing 2 humans after all... so I can't be considered THAT lazy.  I'm just itching to clean the whole house and do all this stuff, but I can't.  I'm just going to have to learn how to be okay with that.

Oh and one last thing.  Some of Jon's co-works threw us a baby shower the Friday before thanksgiving.  It was really so nice and generous of them!  Jon just got pictures today.  I figured I would post one :)

In all things give thanks

Anyone who has glanced at our blog over the last year knows that we have been blessed far beyond anything we deserve and have much to be grateful for.  As we pass 32 weeks, I wanted to point out a few things where I would like to express my gratitude. 

Pregnancy
I am not only so thankful that we have been blessed with our pregnancy, but also with how the pregnancy has gone.  Through seven months Crystal has been blessed to avoid any serious nausea, food aversions, or strange cravings (that I know of!).  Couple those with no serious heath concerns and we couldn't have had a smoother seven months, all things considered.

32 weeks and looking great!  I'll talk about the brace in a moment...

Access to Modern Medicine
This section of thanks is twofold.  First I must express how thankful I am that we are even pregnant.  Our followers are aware of all the time we spent working with the Fertility Doctors.  Without them we likely never would have been able to get pregnant in the first place. Second I am grateful that we continue to have access to modern medical facilities.  Two recent updates comes to mind. 

About a month or so ago Crystal started having regular, painful contractions one night, about every 5 minutes on the dot (you could set your watch by it).  The doctors were able to get her stabilized and address the issue, re-hydrating her body and getting it to calm down.  Then this weekend she started complaining of her hands hurting constantly and going numb.  Monday we called the doctors and after some deliberation they believed she had developed pregnancy induced Carpal Tunnels.  A trip to the pharmacy and two wrist braces later and she is doing much better (though looking like a boxer with taped wrists).  While we wish both of these issues never would have occurred, we are thankful that we have the access to and insurance to get help for them.

Family
No list of thanks is complete without bringing up family.  We are so thankful to have my family near by.  We just wish we could be closer to Crystal's as well.  

Monday we didn't feel like cooking so we went to Papa John's for their Monday special.  As we parked to pick up our pizza, we randomly noticed the other car that pulled into the lot at the same time was my parents.  It turned into a nice opportunity to have our dinner together and visit for a little while as they have been rather busy recently with to-dos of their own.  Thankfully they ordered a different topping than us!

And since I'm already talking about family I cannot leave out the fact of how grateful I am that our little family will be expanding very soon.  We are so excited to meet the new additions, learn their personalities, and realize how little we knew about raising children and being parents.

I am so thankful for the blessings and challenges that I have in life.  While it would be nice to live a life free of hardships, I am grateful for the lessons they teach and the opportunities that we are given to overcome them.  I hope you are all able to enjoy the holidays with your loved ones, near and far.  Happy Thanksgiving from the Criddles.

 

Sharing Infertility

I know that we have been very open about our struggle with infertility and that's what really helped us cope with it.  I understand the need to be private about it and I know there are those of you who have read our blog who are struggling privately and I totally respect that 100%.  It's a very personal thing and it is very heartbreaking.

As we are gearing up to bring these beautiful babies into the world, I sometimes feel guilty for blogging about it, knowing that there are others out there still struggling.   To those who are still struggling, please don't lose hope.  I can't tell you why you are going through this or when it will end or how to fix it, but I can tell you that you are so very loved by our Heavenly Father.  He knows what you are going through.  Never forget that. 

Lastly, I wanted to share this video that was shared with me about being open/private about infertility.  It's about 10mins long, but I really enjoyed it.

Blessed

**edit... I am sorry this is so long!  There aren't any pictures either.. sorry about that.**

November is a time that we all count our blessings and give thanks.  It's just the season.  THANKSgiving is right around the corner, after all. 

This year, we have been blessed far beyond we deserve.  I'm not just saying that to make us sound like we're tooting our own horns or anything.  There have been things that have happened that are purely not a coincidence.  There were times where there was extra money in our bank account even though I knew it shouldn't have been there- the math just didn't add up.  Our families have been safe - esp those of our family in New England who had to experience the "franken-storm", Sandy!

Our list is never ending of things we are so thankful for.  I know that the Lord has a hand in all things and he guides and directs us through it all- no matter how little it may be.

The obvious blessing that we are so very thankful for is the blessing to being able to start our family.  So far, this pregnancy has gone better than we could have imagined.  We've had some hiccups with different things, but overall- everything is going well.

I hit 29 weeks on Wednesday (Oct 31st).  I won't lie, I was seriously dragging that day.  I was so tired.  I could tell I was developing a head cold.  I planned on taking it really easy on Thursday.  I wasn't going to go anywhere or do much of anything.  Well, Thursday (Nov 1) came and started out just fine.  I got a lot of reading done and was able to watch one of my favorite chick flicks. 

Anyways, just before 6:30pm I had decided to start getting ready to go to a church meeting (I was feeling pretty good and I knew I wouldn't be running around if I went).  As I was getting ready, I started to have a lot of pain in my lower abdomen.  At first I figured it was round ligament pain, but then it got worse.  Then came the lovely braxton hicks.  However, I guess at this point we'll just call them contractions.  They were painful.  In a half hour I had had 4.  Jon called me because he was getting ready to come home from work.  I filled him in and while on the phone I had 2 more.  I'm not going to lie.  I had to set aside my pride and make the decision to go to the hospital like my doctor told me to do if something like this happened.  Jon and I planned to meet at the hospital.

I first called my in-laws and they were about a half hour away at a meeting.  So, knowing that most of my lady friends were at the church meeting I was going to go to, I started to think "hmm... who to call??".  The only thing I could think of was to call a few people in order of how far they were from me lol... I was able to get a hold of my lovely friend, Kelli.  She is pretty much a rock star.  Timing was perfect as she was just pulling into her driveway so she dropped her kids off with her husband and headed straight here.  We stopped at chik-fila on the way.  I had eaten a granola bar earlier to tide me over so I could have dinner with Jon when he got home.  Oops..  so we stopped for some food on the way to the hospital.  Anyways, we got to the hospital and I signed in at labor and delivery and was told that all their beds in triage were full so they would come and get me once one had opened up.  I was still having contractions.  Jon got there while we were waiting- so that was nice.  Kelli stayed with us until we were called back to triage.  I really can't thank her enough.  The only thing I could do was buy her dinner at chik-fila- haha!

The nurse was nice and she hooked me up to 3 monitors (1 for contractions and the other 2 for the babies heart beats).  She proceeded to do different tests to determine if I was going into pre-term labor or if there were other problems.  She spoke to the doctor who was on-call for my dr's group.  It wasn't my doctor, but I've met the one who she was talking to.  Anyways, while we were waiting for test results to come back, my contractions were 4 mins apart on the dot.  There was still discomfort/pain but it was lessening.  The most serious tests came back negative- which was really good.  However, they found that I was dehydrated.  For those who know me, you know that I'm always carrying a water bottle with me EVERYWHERE!  So, I was honestly super surprised.  We figured it was because of the head cold I've been getting over.  Anyways, the dehydration was causing the contractions so I was hooked up to an IV and I drained 2 bags of fluid.  Once I got through the first bag, my contractions started to slow down to every 6 mins and then as we started the new bag they slowed to every 8mins.  The on-call doctor was happy with this and said as soon as I was done with the fluids that I could go.

My discharge instructions:  I was told to drink more water than usual because I am having twins and to rest as much as possible.  So, not full bedrest, but still keeping my feet up as much as possible.

I won't lie, I did feel a little sheepish going to the hospital because I knew everything was probably fine, but the nurse eased my feelings by telling me "well, this wasn't nothing!".   I am thankful that it wasn't anything super serious and that I was able to slow my contractions with the IV.  I am so thankful that I felt prompted to go to the hospital.  The Lord always knows how to reach us, no matter what.  We just have to be willing to listen. 

I am so thankful for Jon and for everything he does for me.  I know that coming straight to the hospital from downtown wasn't the easiest commute, but I am so thankful that he was able to be there with me.  He is such a wonderful and supportive husband.  I'm pretty much the luckiest girl on the planet.  I love him so much and am so thankful that he is the one I get to share this adventure with.

30 weeks on Wednesday!  About 6-8 weeks to go!