16 Weeks

So we had our 16 week ultrasound on Monday, I meant to update everyone sooner, but this week seemed to fly by, I am definitely not complaining. Anyways, the appointment was great. We got to see the little guys/girls again for a couple of minutes. They had grown so much in a month, it is so crazy, but great to see that. They were about 4.5 inches. We had some blood tests taken and they came back negative, also great news. We unfortunately did not get to find out what their sexes are, but will be able to know on the 18^th. We have a growth ultrasound, that we will have to have once a month from here on out. They will take measurements of their little bodies including legs, arms, etc. and estimate their weight. They do this to ensure they are growing at the appropriate rate and also to make sure they are growing evenly. They say this typically takes about an hour and a half, so that should be interesting to see. We are now going to be going to see the doctor every two weeks. We have our normal pregnancy appointments once a month and our high risk doctor appointments once a month, but opposite weeks of seeing the other. The high risk doctor is the one that does the growth ultrasounds. Once we get to the 24^th week, we have to start going once a week.

I have been able to feel the little movements here and there. Not every day, but occasionally. I am looking forward to being able to feel them more regularly so I know they are there. The only proof I have now is my growing belly.

So as we have started telling some of my family, we have found out that there are twins in my family and we had no idea. My mom emailed my Aunt Iona (dad’s aunt)to let her know and she replied back that her mom, my Great-Grandma Bernadette had had a set of twins before having my Grandma Laverne (my dad’s mom), but they did not survive. The medical technology was obviously a lot different back then. Also, my Great-Grandpa’s sister had twin boys.  So if it they were fraternal twins, and if ours are fraternal twins, it is possible that the “hyper ovulation gene” (releasing of two eggs) was passed down from my dad. If any of them were identical then it is unlikely, because identical twins are always spontaneous. I will not know if ours are identical or fraternal until (1) we find out they are different sexes, then they are fraternal or (2) they are born if they are the same sex. I have learned so much from this very exciting experience!